Changed
by Ink Outside the Lines
Summary: Sequel to Switched. Inuyasha has discovered that there are many dangers involved with tracking down the jewel shards and trying to defeat Naraku. But he's sure that he's already seen the worst there is to see on such a quest. He's wrong.
1. Chapter 1

Miroku Falls Into a Dangerous Trap

It was very easy for Inuyasha to lose track of the days when he was in the past. There was always so much going on, and it wasn't like when he was at school and knowing the day was really important. Saturday, Monday, it didn't really make a difference. That meant it was always just a little bit tricky for him to go back and count the number of days that he'd been there so he could know what day of the week it was.

 _Let's see, I came here Thursday afternoon, so that makes today…Monday._

It was amazing to think that so much had happened in such a short amount of time. _I hope Mom, Gramps, and Souta aren't too worried about me. Hopefully, by tomorrow we'll make it back to the well so I can get home._

Though relieving his family of possible stress was hardly Inuyasha's only reason for wanting to get home. He had missed school last Friday and today, and he wasn't likely to make it back in time to go to school tomorrow. _Ms. Sato is going to freak._

Inuyasha didn't know how he was supposed to explain this absence to her. He just hoped she didn't storm in on Sensei to see where he was.

 _Don't know why she blames him for my absences._

Or maybe it did make sense, given the way Inuyasha had reacted when she'd woken him up from that dream. It would probably be clear to anyone who wasn't stupid that something violent was going on in his life, and since Inuyasha trained in martial arts, he could see how suspicions could come to rest on Sensei's doorstep.

 _The sooner I get back, the sooner I can make sure Ms. Sato doesn't try to confront Sensei._

Although sooner might not be all that soon at all, if they kept stopping at every village they came across. First they'd had to stop at a village to sell off most of the goods Taromaru had paid them to rescue his friend, which had taken them far longer than Inuyasha had expected. Then at the next village they traveled near, some villagers had recognized Miroku as a priest and Sango as a slayer, and they'd begged for help to get rid of a rat demon that was plaguing the village. Of course, professional pride wouldn't allow Sango to refuse them. Miroku didn't seem all that interested, but it was a poor village, and there was little chance for a profit to be made.

So now here Inuyasha was, fanning a repugnant smelling smoke underneath a house to make the rat demon run towards Sango who stood ready to kill it. Inuyasha had been stuck with the job because the smell was too overwhelming for Kagome or Shippo to do it, and Miroku had insisted that it was necessary for him to stand watch over them and make sure they were alright.

 _The liar just didn't want to have to deal with this. I wish Sango had more than one of her gas masks to filter out this smell._

Finally, from the other side of the house, Inuyasha heard a thump, and then the crowd of curious villagers that had gathered to watched cheered. Sango's voice soon followed, saying, "Inuyasha, the rat demon is dead now."

 _Finally! Now I can finally stop this!_

Inuyasha stamped out what was left of the tiny fire and then walked around to meet up with the others. The villagers were crowded around Sango thanking her, so Inuyasha avoided them to go to Kagome and Shippo, who were sitting a short distance away. Kagome held one of her red sleeves up to her face and winced as Inuyasha approached. "Don't be offended, but you and Sango need to take baths really soon."

"No offence taken," Inuyasha sighed. The smell was pretty strong, and really foul. If it smelled that bad to him, he couldn't imagine how bad it smelled to Kagome or Shippo. Glancing around, Inuyasha realized one member of their party was missing. "Hey, where's Miroku?"

Kagome shrugged. "He said he had some kind of business to take care of."

"What kind of business?" Inuyasha asked.

"Probably something to do with that pretty lady he was following," Shippo said.

Inuyasha's eyebrow twitched. _Pretty lady…He did_ not _go off with some woman while we were in the middle of a job! Then again, he did proposition a six inch goddess for sex, so I doubt there's any woman he_ wouldn't _do._

It was still irritating that he'd gone off while they were supposed to be working. Granted it wasn't a very dangerous job, but even so it was the principle of the matter.

 _Unreliable, perverted-_

"Hey," Sango said, finally having managed to extract herself from the admiring crowd of villagers. "They've offered to let us use their baths and put us up for the night." She blinked and glanced around. "Where's Miroku?"

"He went off with some woman, apparently," Inuyasha said.

Sango's expression mirrored the irritation that Inuyasha felt. "I see. Well, I suppose he'll find us when he returns."

Inuyasha did appreciate the chance to use a real bath, but he had hoped that they would do some more traveling. It was still early afternoon, and if they pushed they could get closer to the village and the Bone Eater's Well before night fell.

 _I guess I wouldn't make it to school tomorrow anyway, so it doesn't really matter if we travel farther tonight._

Still, Inuyasha was impatient to make it back home and do what damage control he could with his school.

Miroku returned from his jaunt just in time for dinner. As usual he was all smiles, but Inuyasha was somewhat gratified to see that both Kagome and Sango were giving him the cold shoulder and miffed looks.

After only a few minutes of this treatment, Miroku leaned over to Inuyasha and asked, "Did I do something to upset them?"

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Well, it could be that you wandering off in the middle of a job to hang out with some pretty lady instead of doing what you were supposed to could have annoyed them."

"But Sango had the job well in hand," Miroku protested, turning his gaze towards the two girls. "Sango, you didn't need my help!"

"True," Sango said, though nothing in her tone or expression said it made a difference to her. "But I thought you were supposed to be watching over Kagome and Shippo, since the smell of the smoke bothered them so much. What made you think it was okay to just leave them for some woman?"

"Really, it wasn't like that!" Miroku protested.

Inuyasha scoffed. "What was she a demon in disguise or something?"

"Yes!" Miroku said triumphantly. "She was actually, and I had to slay her."

"Oh please," Shippo said, shaking his head. "You'll have to come up with a better lie than that."

Miroku glanced around at the others, and when it was clear that no one believed his story he sighed. "Oh, very well. Think what you want."

 _I can't believe that's the story he went with,_ Inuyasha thought. _As if that would actually happen._

Not long after dinner they all retired for the night. It had been a long day for them, and the next day promised to be filled with travel as well. As Inuyasha was settling in the futon he'd been provided with, Shippo curling up next to him, he noticed Miroku staring at his right hand, the one that had been cursed by Naraku.

 _How did that curse go again? The wind tunnel in his hand will keep expanding until it consumes him?_

That seemed like an awful way to die, and thoughts of his possibly eventual fate were probably all that was making Miroku look so pensive as he stared at his hand. They were certainly heavy enough thoughts to make anyone pensive. But something about Miroku's intense expression made Inuyasha think there might be more bothering the monk than just his hand and the possible future it contained.

Since they were only separated from the girls by a folding screen, Inuyasha lowered his voice so he wouldn't attract their attention. "Is something bothering you?" he asked.

Miroku glanced over at him, his expression of surprise quickly replaced by a bland smile. "Would you even believe me if I said yes?" he asked, his tone light and mocking.

Inuyasha glared, insulted by his tone. _I try to be nice, and this is what I get!_ "Fine, brood to yourself," Inuyasha snapped, rolling over so his back was to Miroku, ignoring Shippo's indignant yelp at being pushed out of his comfortable spot. "See if I care."

Shippo climbed over him, grumbling something about inconsiderate pack mates whatever that was supposed to mean, and then squirmed his way under Inuyasha's arm, so that Inuyasha was holding him much like a child might hold a teddy bear to sleep with. Inuyasha allowed it only because he felt a little bad about jostling Shippo so much; it wasn't the fox demon's fault that Miroku was an idiot.

As for the monk, Inuyasha heard him sigh and then lay down, but Miroku made no attempts to speak again.

* * *

Inuyasha woke up because Shippo was shaking his shoulder. "What?" he grumbled, wishing Shippo would have let him sleep just a little longer.

"Miroku is gone!" Shippo said.

Inuyasha yawned and sat up. "So what? He probably needed to use the bathroom or something."

"No, Inuyasha, he's _gone_ gone!" Shippo said. "His stuff is gone, and he's not anywhere in the village!"

Now Inuyasha was fully awake. He looked around, and saw that Shippo was right about Miroku's things missing. His futon had also been neatly folded and put away.

"But where would he go?" Kagome asked.

Inuyasha looked back and saw Kagome and Sango peeking around the screen that separated them, clearly having heard everything that Shippo had said.

"Maybe he had another lady friend to visit," Inuyasha said trying to make light of the situation. But in truth, he actually was a little worried. It didn't seem likely that Miroku would want to separate from their little group altogether given that he was on a quest to kill Naraku, and their group was sure to run into him again. But if he wasn't leaving their group, why go off without saying anything, and why take his stuff with him?

"You don't think," Sango said slowly, "that he was telling the truth last night, do you?"

"I guess it's possible," Kagome allowed, and now she looked worried. "Do you think we hurt his feelings when we didn't believe him?"

Inuyasha snorted at that thought. He had a feeling it would take much more than accusations of untruthfulness to hurt Miroku's feelings. But if his feelings weren't hurt, then what was wrong?

"Being accused of lies when I was telling the truth would certainly hurt _my_ feelings," said a voice that no one had been expecting to hear. "I'm not sure I'd want to travel with people who didn't trust me."

Everyone's glares focused on Kagome's shoulder, and the flea demon situated on it. "Myoga! Don't do that!" Kagome said.

"My apologies, Kagome," Myoga said. "By the way, who are we talking about?"

"Miroku," Inuyasha said. "He's a monk that joined up with us after you left because he wants to hunt down Naraku."

"I see," Myoga said. "And who is Naraku?"

Shippo slapped a hand to his forehead, and Inuyasha felt like mimicking the gesture. Myoga had missed a lot since he'd left.

"We'll explain later," Kagome said. "For now, we need to concentrate on figuring out where Miroku went, and finding out why he left."

"Should we really bother?" Sango asked. "There's no reason that Miroku has to be involved in our mission. If he really wants to go his own way we should let him."

"If he just wanted to go his own way, why not tell us?" Kagome shook her head. "Something's off about this whole situation, and I want to find out what. Besides, if we did accuse Miroku of lying unfairly, we ought to apologize. If Miroku still wants to go his own way after we've found him, then fine."

Submitting to Kagome's decision, everyone hastily dressed and packed their things before locating the village elder who had housed them that night. "Excuse me," Inuyasha said. "Did you happen to see the monk that was with us leaving earlier this morning?"

"As a matter of fact, I did," the elder said. "He left about an hour before sunrise, heading out of the village toward the northwest."

Inuyasha scowled. The northwest was not the direction they'd been traveling in; wherever Miroku was going, it was taking him way out of their way.

 _I might not be getting home tomorrow after all._

"We'd better be on our way then," Sango said.

"Will you stay for breakfast?" the elder asked.

"Thank you for the offer, but we really can't afford to wait any longer before going after him," Sango said. "He's bound to get himself into some kind of trouble if we don't."

They left in the direction indicated by the elder. "Kagome," Sango said. "Do you think you can follow Miroku's scent?"

Tipping her head back, she sniffed the air, and then she crouched down and sniffed in the direction of the ground. It was weird watching her do so, and it was moments like this more than anything else that served to remind Inuyasha that being half demon meant more differences than dog ears and strange coloring.

"Got it," she said. "I can follow his scent. We'll travel faster if you three ride on Kirara while I run."

Sango nodded and looked down at Kirara. In response, Kirara transformed into her larger size, and Sango, Inuyasha, and Shippo climbed onto her back. They traveled at a decent pace like this for almost an hour, and then Kagome waved up at them, signaling for them to come back down to the path.

"What is it?" Sango asked as Kirara touched down to the ground.

"I've lost his scent," Kagome said.

"How could that happen?" Inuyasha asked.

Kagome frowned. "I'm not sure what happened. It smells like he met up with a raccoon demon here, and then his scent just vanishes."

"That's odd," Sango said. "Raccoon demons are mostly harmless, and they tend to avoid people. I can't think of a way for them to make someone vanish."

"And I can't think of any that are actually strong enough to pose a threat to Miroku," Shippo said. "Even without his wind tunnel a raccoon demon shouldn't be a danger to him."

"If it isn't a threat, then maybe it's a friend," Inuyasha volunteered. "Maybe it's helping him get wherever he's going quicker."

"It is possible," Myoga said, "but it seems somewhat unlikely. Demons and monks don't become friends."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "I'm a priest in training, and in this time period I have more demon friends than human."

"Point," agreed Myoga.

"So let's assume they're friends then," Sango said. "Raccoon demons have similar abilities to fox demons. Could it have transformed and flown Miroku somewhere?"

"It would explain why his scent just disappears like this," Kagome said.

"But if he's flying, how are we supposed to know where he's going?" Shippo asked. "He could have gone in any direction now!"

"I guess we could fly in ever widening circles until we find him," Inuyasha offered.

Kagome shook her head. "That will take way too long. If he really is in some kind of trouble, we need to find him as quickly as possible."

"Besides," Sango added, "that would have us looking over areas we've already traveled through, and we know he isn't there."

Inuyasha glared at them. "Do any of you have a better suggestion?"

"Perhaps we should just keep going straight," Myoga suggested. "His course has not wavered up to this point; there is no reason it necessarily has to change now that he's flying."

Kagome sighed. "It isn't a great plan, but I guess it's the best we have. Hopefully if he changed course there will be some kind of sign."

Their plan of action decided, Kirara took to the air again while Kagome ran on below. _There has to be a better way of finding the stupid monk,_ Inuyasha thought. _Wait, Kaede taught me how to sense demons and people with spiritual abilities. Maybe I could reach out and find him?_

Granted he hadn't really practiced with this ability since Kaede had first taught it to him, though he'd started to get used to the low grade buzz of awareness of the others while they were around him. It had been a little annoying at first, though by now he was starting to be able to tune it out. But having spent as much time as he had around Miroku, Inuyasha thought his presence should be easy enough to notice, as long as he was in Inuyasha's range.

 _Not that I have any idea what my range is._

Still, it was worth a try. Closing his eyes, Inuyasha centered himself. Meditating while flying on the back of Kirara wasn't easy but after some minutes of trying he managed it. As soon as he slipped into his meditative state, the presence of the others flared much more brightly in his him. Inuyasha quickly noted Myoga's presence with Kagome on the ground. The flea demon's presence was small and quiet, but also somehow ancient, like a weathered outcropping of rock on a mountain that refused to crumble no matter what the elements threw at it.

Ignoring the presence of his friends, Inuyasha tried to take a mental step back from his power, allowing it to flow farther away from him. He was surprised to notice the presence of a few demons in the forest, but they felt weak, and Inuyasha couldn't feel any intentions of harm coming from them. He took another mental step back, and his power flowed even farther out, but now the task left Inuyasha feeling strained, like he'd been at one of Sensei's lessons for far too long. But he still couldn't feel Miroku's shimmering presence, so with great effort, Inuyasha took another mental step away, but then something seemed to pop and he snapped out of his meditative state with a gasp.

Exhaustion and dizziness flooded over him, and Inuyasha had to tighten his one armed grip on Sango in order not to fall off of Kirara.

"Are you alright?" Sango asked, twisting around slightly to look at him.

Thankfully the wave of dizziness passed quickly, but the exhaustion remained, though it wasn't as bad as what he'd felt after exorcising Mayu. "Fine, I'm fine. I just overdid it a bit."

"Doing what?" Shippo asked.

"Kaede taught me how to use my powers to sense demons and spiritually aware humans," Inuyasha said. "I thought I might be able to use that to find Miroku, but I guess my range isn't very far right now, and I overreached a bit."

"But you're alright?" Sango asked again.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "I'm fine. Just tired." How tired he didn't want to tell her; he really hoped that Miroku wasn't in any kind of trouble, because at the moment Inuyasha didn't think the others could count on any help from him.

After about another hour, they came across a large, open area that had a temple situated in it. Some distance away from the temple was a deep crater, but it couldn't have been a new crater because grass had grown inside of it.

"What in the world could have done that?" Sango wondered out loud.

Normally Inuyasha would have guess a meteorite, or something like that, but with the number of strange demons running around in this time, it seemed pointless to try and guess. Kagome waved up at them, gesturing for them to land again. Kirara settled on the ground lightly and Kagome said, "Miroku's here! I can smell him again!"

"Finally!" Shippo said, hopping off of Kirara to Kagome. "Now we can find out what's going on with him."

Sango and Inuyasha slid off of Kirara's back and the cat changed into her smaller form. As a group they approached the temple, and just as they started up the stairs that led to the porch, a door slid open and Miroku started outside, followed closely by a chubby raccoon demon. Both froze when they caught sight of everyone.

"What are you doing here?" Miroku asked.

"We came looking for you," Kagome said. "You can't just run off like that without saying anything to us! We were worried about you!"

Inuyasha had never seen Miroku look so genuinely surprised as he did in that moment. "You were?"

"Of course we were, we're your friends!" Kagome said, and then she stopped, as though just realizing that just because she thought they were friends, didn't necessarily mean that Miroku thought of them the same way.

Inuyasha glared at the monk. _If he dares to tell Kagome they aren't friends, I'm going to punch him._

But Miroku didn't reject Kagome's claim of friendship. Instead, he smiled and said, "Of course, you're right. I'm sorry I worried everyone; that wasn't my intention."

 _He probably didn't think we'd care that he left,_ Inuyasha thought. Then he noticed the brilliant way Kagome smiled at him. _I still hate him._

"What's going on here?" asked a new voice. And old man approached from behind Miroku and the raccoon demon. He was rather short and widely built, and the only hair on his head was a thick gray mustache.

"Master Mushin," Miroku said, "these are my friends, Kagome, Sango, Inuyasha, Shippo, and Kirara. Everyone, this is Master Mushin. He's the one who trained me. And this is Hachi."

"You missed one," Mushin said.

Miroku blinked. "Ah, who?"

"It is not his fault," Myoga spoke up from Kagome's shoulder. "We have not officially met yet. I am Myoga."

"It is a pleasure to meet you all," Mushin said genially. Then he turned to Miroku. "Didn't I tell you to go purify yourself for the surgery?"

"Surgery?" Inuyasha said. "Why do you need surgery?"

"Didn't he tell you?" Mushin asked. "He fought a praying mantis demon, and when he sucked it into his wind tunnel it nicked the edge, causing the wind tunnel to expand. I can fix the cut, reducing the wind tunnel back to its earlier size."

But when had he fought a praying mantis…Oh. And if it had caused the wind tunnel to expand, then the injury may have shaved years off of Miroku's life.

 _And when he tried to tell us, we called him a liar._

Oops. No wonder Miroku hadn't bothered to tell them that he was going to Mushin for help, not after how they'd acted before.

Mushin turned back to Miroku. "Now go and purify yourself, or we'll never be able to get started. I'll take care of your friends."

Miroku nodded and then left, the raccoon demon Hachi following close behind him. Mushin ushered them inside the temple. It was a decently large temple, the sort the seemed like it ought to be housing a number of monks, but it seemed strangely empty and sadly neglected, as though Mushin hadn't bothered with any of the cleaning in weeks.

"I'll prepare some tea for you, but then I'm afraid I have things I need to prepare for the surgery," Mushin said.

"We understand," Sango said. "We don't want you to go through any trouble on our behalf."

"It's no trouble at all," Mushin said. "Miroku has never brought home friends before, so this is a pleasant surprise."

He'd never brought home friends? Come to think of it, what with the way Miroku traveled all the time, never staying in one place for more than a few days, did he even really have friends? Aside from themselves and Hachi, there was probably a good chance he didn't. _And I'm kind of curious as to how he met up with Hachi in the first place._ Miroku had never made mention of him before. Actually, Miroku never mentioned any part of his personal life, except for telling them about the curse that Naraku had laid down on his family.

Speaking of Miroku's family, where were his parents? Miroku wasn't that much older than Inuyasha, two or three years, tops. If this was his home, shouldn't his parents be around somewhere?

 _Unless they're not anymore._

Miroku's curse was supposed to kill him eventually, and since his father had had the same curse it was certainly possible that Miroku's father had already been consumed by his wind tunnel. That possibility led Inuyasha to uncomfortable ideas of what that crater might be after all. As for Miroku's mother, there was any number of possibilities as to what might have happened to her, illness, accident, or demon attack. Inuyasha was curious, but figured it was probably better to not ask.

 _How do we end up collecting so many orphans?_ Kagome's parents were dead, as were Sango's, Shippo's, and Miroku's. Inuyasha still had his mother, but had lost his father years ago. _You'd think with a group of this many people at least one of us would still have both parents._

Mushin set out the tea for them. "I must go prepare for the surgery now; please do not worry about Miroku. I have performed this sort of operation before."

With those parting words, the old monk left.

Once they were alone, Kagome sighed into her tea. "I feel bad that we didn't believe him when he said he'd been in a fight," she said.

"Don't," Sango said. "We know he's a notorious flirt, and we knew he had gone off with a woman. Our conclusions were only logical."

"Maybe," Kagome said, "but it doesn't show much trust in him if he says we're wrong and we don't listen to him at all."

"People can say anything," Sango replied. "I trust what I see them do."

"But Miroku did what he said," Shippo pointed out.

"Of course the whole situation could have been avoided if he hadn't left us in the first place," Inuyasha said.

Everyone nodded in agreement with that.

By the time they finished their tea Miroku had returned, still followed by Hachi. Instead of his usual purple and black robes, Miroku was wearing white and his damp hair attested that at least part of the purification ritual probably involved bathing.

He nodded to them. "Do you need anything?" he asked.

"Directions to the kitchen if you don't mind," Sango said standing. "It's getting to lunch time, and I don't know about you, but we skipped breakfast this morning."

"Certainly," Miroku said. He quickly showed her the way to the kitchen. "Feel free to use any supplies already here." Then he retreated into the same back rooms that Mushin had earlier.

Hachi sat just outside of their little circle, but Shippo quickly crossed over to him. "So how did you and Miroku meet?" he asked.

"Master Miroku once saved my life from a terrible demon that was going to eat me," Hachi said. "Since then, I swore that I would serve him for the rest of his life."

"So you're Miroku's servant," Shippo clarified.

"I am," Hachi said.

"If you're his servant, how come you aren't with him all the time?" Shippo asked. "Leaving him on his own doesn't seem like a very good thing to do if you're supposed to be a loyal servant."

Tuning out Hachi's indignant reply, Inuyasha closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall. He was still tired from his efforts at locating Miroku earlier, and this seemed like the best chance he might get for a break, while Sango and Kagome were fixing lunch and Shippo had a new person to bother. He didn't have a clue what Myoga was up to and didn't care.

 _At least my sense of everyone is starting to get back to normal. Their presences don't feel quite so dull now._

Now that he was paying attention, he noticed Myoga was in fact in the kitchen with Sango and Kagome. He could also sense Miroku about two rooms over with Mushin. Inuyasha frowned when he noticed Mushin's presence. Something felt wrong with it; a brilliant silvery sort of presence, it was as though there was another, darker presence inside of Mushin's.

 _It doesn't feel human._

Inuyasha jumped to his feet, startling Shippo and Hachi. "Inuyasha, what's wrong?" Shippo asked.

"Something's wrong with Mushin!" Inuyasha said before taking off outside. He wasn't sure what the feeling meant exactly, but sensing a demon within Mushin couldn't possibly mean anything good.

Just as he made it to the door to the room where Miroku's surgery was to be performed, Miroku fell out of the room, slamming into Inuyasha. Because Inuyasha hadn't been expecting it and because he was already tired, the force knocked Inuyasha to the ground and Miroku landed heavily on top of him. Following close behind was Mushin, holding a butcher's knife in one raised hand. Inuyasha's eyes widened and time seemed to slow. Miroku was heavy and he was tired; there was no way he could shove Miroku off and raise his staff in time to block the blow. Either he or Miroku were about to die.

As Mushin brought the butcher's knife down, suddenly Kagome's hand shot out and caught the blade. With a twist she wrenched the knife away from him and tossed it to the side. Inuyasha shoved Miroku off; the monk was strangely still and limp for someone who'd almost been killed.

"Can't move," Miroku gasped. "He paralyzed me."

 _Well, crap._

Dropping his staff, Inuyasha grabbed Miroku and dragged him away from the doorway as the others ran up.

"Mushin, what are you doing?" Kagome demanded, seemingly unfazed by the blood that dripped from her injured hand.

Mushin laughed. "Isn't it obvious? I'm going to kill Miroku. Naraku promised me a jewel shard if I did so."

 _Naraku! That bastard!_

"It isn't Mushin!" he called out to Kagome, sure now of what he had sensed. "I think there's a demon controlling him, or possessing him or something!"

Which made this fight a lot harder than it would be otherwise; they couldn't hurt Mushin, but they had to stop whatever was controlling him.

Mushin, or whatever was controlling him, laughed. "Well, well, you figured that out surprisingly fast. But what are you going to do about it? You can't hurt Mushin; without his skills, that rip in Miroku's wind tunnel will cause it to swallow him up by tomorrow afternoon.

Inuyasha's jaw dropped, and he heard Shippo gasp. Tomorrow afternoon? If Miroku didn't get help he was going to die by tomorrow afternoon? Inuyasha might not like Miroku much, but he didn't want the monk to die.

"Then we're going to free Mushin!" Kagome said.

"Good and how will you do that while trying to survive?" Mushin asked.

 _What is he talking about?_

Then he felt it, the sudden arrival of scores of demons, so many that they darkened the sky. They were weak demons, individually, but with this many grouped together…without the use of Miroku's wind tunnel, there was no way they could possibly survive.

"Demon worm charmer," Miroku said.

"What?" Inuyasha asked.

"He told me he's a demon worm charmer," Miroku said, glancing towards Mushin's gloating form.

"In that case," Myoga said from Sango's shoulder, "he must be nearby to stay in control. If we can find him, we can save Mushin."

Great. But that still left the _tiny_ problem of the scores of demons that wanted to rip them apart and eat them.

Drawing the Tetsusaiga, Kagome jumped off of the porch to place herself between the mob of demons and everyone else. "Kagome, what are you doing?" Inuyasha shouted. "Get out of there!"

"Shut up, Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted back, never taking her eyes off of the demons as they swooped down on her. "Just shut up and _let me protect you_!"

As she spoke she swung the Tetsusaiga with all her strength and it suddenly pulsed with enough energy to make Inuyasha's knees wobble, even though it wasn't directed at him. Streams of power shot from the blade and cut through the horde relentlessly, shredding the demons into chunks of flesh.

"That's impossible," Sango said, her voice shaky.

"No," Myoga replied. "That is the true power of the Tetsusaiga."

 _They're all dead,_ Inuyasha thought numbly. _She killed_ all _of them! With just one swing of her sword!_

"On the roof!" Hachi suddenly cried, pointing.

Sango reacted quickest, looking up and throwing her hiraikotsu in almost the same motion. Inuyasha only just caught sight of the demon worm charmer before the weapon slammed into him, ripping him in half. His body disintegrated before it touched the ground, but a jar landed.

"Quickly!" Myoga said. "Get the jar to Mushin and it will call the demon worms out of him!"

Shippo bounded over to the jar and back, holding it up to Mushin. What flowed from his mouth didn't look all that much like worms to Inuyasha, more like a mist. When it was gone, Mushin fell over, unconscious.

"He's alright!" Shippo called. "I think."

Inuyasha sighed, and then glared down at Miroku, who he was still supporting. "You see why it's a stupid idea to run off without us? What do you think would have happened if we hadn't been here to save your tail?"

Miroku chuckled. "I am sorry. You have my word it won't happen again."

"It'd better not, after all this trouble," Inuyasha grumbled. "Hey, Hachi, help me get Miroku back to a futon or I'm dropping him. Stupid monk is heavy. Have you thought about skipping a few meals?"

"Hey!" Miroku protested.

"The truth hurts, monk. The truth hurts."


	2. Chapter 2

Sango's Suffering

Hanajima Sato had had _enough_. Inuyasha had missed school Friday, and again on Monday. When she'd called his home to find out where he was, his mother had once again insisted that he'd contracted the flu.

 _Flu, hah! As if!_

It was time, Hanajima had decided, to confront the one she believed most likely to be responsible for this mess. This was what found Hanajima outside of the dojo Inuyasha attended on that Monday afternoon. From the sounds inside, there was a class already in session, so Hanajima resisted any urges to barge in. Instead, she slipped inside the building quietly, and, glancing around, saw that she had been correct in assuming that class had begun already. A group of teenagers, about Inuyasha's age it looked like. Possibly this was the class he normally attended after school, but she didn't see him among the students.

Spotting an area that seemed to be set aside for waiting parents or other visitors, Hanajima settled herself out of the way, prepared to wait however long necessary to speak with the sensei, whatever his name was. She didn't think Inuyasha had ever mentioned it.

While she waited, Hanajima took the time to study Inuyasha's sensei. It wasn't hard to figure out which of the teachers was in charge. It had to be the one that was practically prowling around the teens, speaking a word here, adjusting someone's form there. Then there was his presence, giving off a clear sense of ownership and confidence. He simply didn't give off the vibe of someone who would work for another person.

 _He's a good teacher,_ Hanajima grudgingly admitted to herself. True, what he taught was drastically different from what she taught, but whatever was being taught the characteristics of a good teacher were always the same, and Hanajima had taught long enough that she knew a good teacher when she saw one. It was clear from the interactions between him and his students that they respected him and were eager to learn, and he showed them a measure of respect in return.

It was enough to make Hanajima doubt her initial assumptions that this man was at the root of whatever was going on with Inuyasha. Would a good teacher who respected his students and was respected by them in turn really do something to put their student in danger? If asked that question previously, Hanajima's answer would have been a vehement no.

 _Maybe he's just good at faking it._

The class lasted longer than Hanajima would have preferred to wait; she had homework to grade tonight. Aside from the work she putting off for this, she wasn't all that comfortable watching their training, because it brought to mind those frightening few seconds when Inuyasha had…lost control of himself. But eventually it did end, and when it did Inuyasha's sensei immediately approached her, which came as a surprise.

 _I didn't think he'd noticed me._

Well, apparently he had, though what he might think of her presence was impossible to tell from his neutral expression. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"I would like to speak to you privately, about a student of mine that you train," Hanajima said. "Inuyasha Higurashi."

The man's expression didn't even flicker. In fact, it was such a careful non-reaction that Hanajima was certain this man knew exactly why she wanted to talk about Inuyasha. "I don't discuss my students with anyone who isn't a parent or guardian. It's policy. If there is nothing else you wanted to discuss, Mrs…"

"Ms. Sato," she corrected him crisply, and did she really look old enough that marriage should just be assumed? Well, okay, she was plenty old enough to be married by now, as her mother seemed to enjoy pointing out nearly every time they talked, but she didn't need complete strangers reminding her that she was twenty eight and single. "And I happen to think it is very important that you discuss Inuyasha's absences with me."

"I would think absences from school should be discussed with his mother," he replied, and then turned his back in a clear dismissal.

Hanajima's spine stiffened at the insulting treatment. Rather than turning back as he clearly wished her to do, she followed him. "I have spoken to Mrs. Higurashi, and I know she's lying about him having the flu."

Again, zero reaction, and there should have been _something_ with Hanajima making a statement like that. This man might not be a block of ice, but he could impersonate one very well. "If you statement is true, which I doubt, I fail to see how it has anything to do with me."

"It has to do with you, because I believe whatever dangerous mess Inuyasha is involved in has you at the heart of it," Hanajima said, and that statement finally got a reaction out of him.

He whirled about with startling speed, taking full advantage of the near foot height difference between them to loom over her in an exceedingly intimidating manner. His black eyes burned with a quiet fury, and it suddenly occurred to her that she'd left her purse, and the pepper spray she kept in it, back in the waiting area, so she was now a good fifteen feet away from any sort of protection from his man, and that was fifteen feet too far.

 _Stupid. He's not_ actually _going to attack you._

Unless of course he was really involved in something dangerous and illegal, in which case this might be the stupidest thing Hanajima had ever done in her life.

"Ms. Sato," he said, and his voice was far too eerily calm taken in conjunction with those angry eyes. "Are you saying that I would purposely endanger one of my students?"

Hanajima raised her chin in challenge, refusing to let him see any sign of nervousness. "I am saying that, and I'm saying that I'm going to find out how!"

"Get _out_ of my dojo!" The words were more a growl than a roar, but no less of a command for that. He turned his back on her again, the sharpness of his movement causing his long braid to almost hit her in the face.

Hanajima glared at his back, and for one moment considered pursuing the topic further. She quickly discarded the notion, deciding that she'd pushed his temper as far as good sense would allow. Grabbing up her bag and avoiding the gaze of the wide eyed assistant instructor, Hanajima beat a hasty retreat from the dojo.

 _Well, that could have gone better._ Still, it had been enlightening in its own way, even if it hadn't given Hanajima all the details she had wished for. His carefulness to not respond when she mention Inuyasha and Mrs. Higurashi lying about him having the flu led Hanajima to firmly believe that she was right about the lies, and that Inuyasha's sensei was well aware of them. _But he was genuinely angry when I said I thought he was putting Inuyasha in danger._ And that could mean a lot of things. If he was innocent, it could mean that he was highly insulted that she was leveling such accusations at him. If he wasn't, it could mean he was angry that Hanajima was starting to figure things out.

 _But when I talked about the things that I_ know _I'm right about, he didn't react at all. So does that mean that him reacting with anger means I'm actually wrong about this?_

Maybe, maybe not. Hanajima couldn't decide for certain. What was for certain, was that whatever was going on in Inuyasha's life, his sensei knew what it was.

 _I'm going to figure out what's going on here. You haven't seen the last of me, Mr.… I still have no idea what his name is._

* * *

It was with much relief that Inuyasha and his friends got the news that Miroku's surgery had gone well. But of course by the time his surgery ended, there was no question about whether or not they should try to keep moving on that night. Miroku needed a peaceful rest to recover from his surgery, and everyone else was pretty worn out after everything that had happened that day as well. The evening spent at the temple was surprisingly pleasant, and when morning dawned, it promised fair weather for traveling.

"It was an honor meeting you, Mushin," Kagome said as they prepared to leave.

"The honor is mine," Mushin said. "And thank you again for saving Miroku's life as well as my own. He has found good friends in all of you."

With those parting words they left, Hachi going off on his own way rather than staying with the group. Myoga also went on his own way, saying he'd only stopped in to see how they were doing, and that he had other things to handle for now.

 _Finally,_ Inuyasha thought. _Hopefully now we can get back to the village without anymore distractions, and I can get home._

He'd already been gone longer than he expected to be when he'd left his home Thursday night. Now it was Tuesday, and he was going to miss school today too, as there was no way they'd make it back this night thanks to Miroku's detour. At best he could go to school late tomorrow, at worst he'd end up missing another day.

 _Ms. Sato is going to kill me when I get back._

Well, maybe not kill him. Torture in attempt to get answers was definitely a possibility though.

 _I just hope she hasn't stormed Sensei's dojo. If I can just head that off, maybe things will work out okay._

"You know," Shippo spoke up from where he was easily balanced on Inuyasha's shoulder. "I can't believe we've traveled around so much and haven't come across even one jewel shard."

"It does seem strange," Sango said.

"Well, we don't even know how many shards are out there," Kagome said. "There might not be that many left."

Inuyasha frowned, sort of hoping that wasn't actually the case, because Naraku had way more shards than they did right now. _Of course Naraku having the rest would make things simpler in a way; we'd only need to take them from one person._

Right, one person who was proving very hard to track down, not to mention the fact that every jewel shard he gathered only made him more powerful.

 _On second thought, I really don't want him to have the rest of the jewel shards._

"We'll find them or we won't," Miroku said practically. "There's no need to worry over it."

Something buzzed on the edge of Inuyasha's senses, and he paused. _You can't be serious._

"What is it, Inuyasha?" Kagome asked.

"I think I'm sensing a jewel shard," Inuyasha said.

"That's coincidental timing," Shippo said.

"Which way is it?" Kagome asked, and Inuyasha pointed. "That way."

The jewel shard Inuyasha sensed led them off the path they had been following and deep into the forest the path had bordered. Kagome was at the head of their group, but suddenly she yelped and stumbled backward as though she'd run into a wall.

"What is it?" Inuyasha asked, quickly stepping up to her to make sure she wasn't hurt.

"There's a barrier," Kagome said, glaring at the area ahead of them. "I can't pass through it."

"A barrier?" Miroku questioned. Carefully, he reached a hand forward, but it met no resistance. "It must be designed to only affect demons then."

"Which means if you go forward, Shippo, Kirara and I can't go with you," Kagome said.

Sango scowled. "I don't like it. It almost feels like this was purposely designed to split us up."

"Or maybe whoever has the jewel shard doesn't expect humans to be any kind of threat," Shippo said.

"So what are we going to do?" Inuyasha asked. "Should the three of us go ahead and try and get the jewel shard, or what?"

"Well, we can't just ignore that it's here," Kagome said.

"Perhaps from the inside we'll find a way to bring the barrier down," Miroku said.

"Be careful," Kagome cautioned.

The three of them proceeded ahead together then, all on high alert for any dangers that might appear. Following the pull of the jewel shard, they eventually left the woods, coming to a clearing with a castle centered on top of a hill. It was, Inuyasha noted, a very defensible position; since the castle had the high ground, whoever lived in it would see enemies coming from far away.

But of more importance than the castle itself was the man who stood in the gate that led to it. Leaning on his spear shaft in a deceptively casual pose that was belied by his grim expression was Hayasaka. Sango let out a strangled gasp at the sight of him. "Father."

 _This is bad. Really bad._

Hayasaka didn't acknowledge Sango's presence. Instead, he pointed his tsuki nari spear at Inuyasha and Miroku. "Get them," he said.

From behind the wall of the castle came floods of lesser demons who rushed at them. Their first act was to put themselves between Sango and the guys, completely cutting her off from their sight. "Sango!" Inuyasha shouted, but he didn't have time for any more words as demons rushed him and he was kept busy trying to fight off slashing claws and gnashing teeth with his staff.

"Wind tunnel!" Miroku called unleashing the weapon. Winds howled around them, dragging shrieking demons into the black hole at the center of his hand. Within moments the numbers of the demons had been reduced to a more manageable number; still it took time to finish them off, and it was only when the last demon was slain that they were able to realize that Sango and her father had vanished.

"She's got to be in the castle!" Miroku said. "Come on!"

* * *

When the flood of demons had swept over them, Sango had been distracted from her father for a moment by her worry for her friends. That was her mistake; those precious few seconds had been all Hayasaka needed to immobilize her with a weighted chain and drag her off into the castle.

"Father, stop this, please!" Sango begged.

He didn't speak to her, didn't even look at her as he dragged her deeper into the castle. His silence hurt almost as much as knowing his will was enslaved to Naraku's.

He pulled her into another room and then stopped short, releasing his hold on her, though he didn't remove the chain. Sitting in the room as though he didn't have a care in the world was another man, one that Sango realized must be Naraku, even though she'd never actually seen him face to face before.

He smiled at her and spoke in a deep voice that was as smooth as silk. "Hello, Sango."

She was stunned for a moment that she was actually in Naraku's presence. Then anger took over, flashing through her like wild fire. "You monster!" she spat, jerking at her chains, desperate to lay hold of a weapon. She had never longed for someone's death before, but she did for this demon, thirsted for his death like a woman who'd been lost in a desert for days on end thirsted for water.

But her anger only seemed to amuse Naraku. "I have a deal to propose, Sango," he said.

"Why would I ever make a deal with you?" she snapped.

"Because it could save your father," Naraku said.

Sango stilled. She hated Naraku, hated him _so much_ , and any deal with him could only be a trap of some kind, she knew that. But as much as she hated Naraku, she loved her father more. So even though she knew it couldn't end well, knew she shouldn't ever do anything for Naraku, she couldn't stop herself from asking, "How?"

"It's simple," Naraku said. "All you have to do is bring me the Tetsusaiga. Then I will release your father from my power. I'll even allow him to keep the jewel shard so that he continues to live. What do you say?"

What could she say? What could she do? Naraku was asking her to betray Kagome, to betray all of her friends, and taking the Tetsusaiga would put Kagome at a serious disadvantage in later fights. It might even ensure Naraku's victory in collecting the other jewel shards. Sango couldn't do that to them, she couldn't.

 _But my_ father!

She had a chance to save him! To free him from his enslavement! How could she live with herself if she passed such an opportunity up?

 _Damned if I do, damned if I don't,_ she thought, because whatever she chose to do, she'd be betraying someone, and the guilt of that thought was almost enough to break her.

 _What would Father want me to do?_ But even as she thought the question, Sango already knew the answer. He'd given it to her the last time she'd seen him, when he'd ordered her to kill him if at all possible.

 _But we didn't think there was any way to save him then._

Now she had a choice, a terrible, poisonous choice, and there was really only one thing she could do. "Okay," she said. "I'll do it."

Naraku's smile deepened. "Good." Then he stood and slipped out a barely noticeable back door. Before Sango could wonder why he was leaving so quickly after she'd agreed, the door that Hayasaka had brought her through burst open, allowing Inuyasha and Miroku inside.

Hayasaka moved to intercept them and they attacked. Tied up as she was, Sango couldn't do anything about the fight, but watching them she realized that Hayasaka was not fighting them at his full ability.

 _Of course he isn't. He's going to let them rescue me, so that I can…_ She stopped that thought. She didn't want to think about what she was going to do to them.

Hayasaka left an opening, and Miroku took advantage of it, knocking him unconscious. As soon as he hit the ground Inuyasha rushed over to her and removed her chains. "Sango, are you alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she answered, and it sounded like a lie even to her. Hopefully they would just assume that her pain was caused by seeing her father again, not anything more.

"Why did he take you?" Miroku asked.

"I don't know," Sango said. "Maybe he was under orders to capture me."

Inuyasha glanced over at him. "What should we do with him now? If I take his jewel shard, he'll…"

"No!" Sango said sharply, startling both of them. "Please, no. Maybe we could just bring him back with us? Maybe we can figure out a way to save him."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Miroku said. "Bringing him back with us, I mean. He has no choice but to obey Naraku's orders, so bringing him back with us just puts everyone in danger."

"So we just do nothing?" Inuyasha asked.

Miroku sighed. "If we cannot take his jewel shard, then it seems that for now it's our only option."

"Can we just go, please?" Sango asked. She didn't like seeing her father like this, and she wanted to get stealing the Tetsusaiga over with.

"Okay," Inuyasha said. "Let's go."

They didn't talk as they went back to where they had left the others. As soon as they were in sight, Shippo called out, "What happened?"

"Is everyone okay?" Kagome asked.

"We're okay," Inuyasha said, glancing over at her as he spoke. Sango looked away from him. She didn't want him to feel sorry for her pain, not with what she was planning to do.

 _I have to! If there is any chance I can save him, then I have to take it!_

"What happened? Did you get the jewel shard?" Shippo asked again.

"No, we didn't," Miroku sighed. "Perhaps it would be best if we told you what happened while we travel."

As they started walking, Kirara jumped up into Sango's arms. Sango held her close for comfort while Miroku recounted the events of what had happened.

When he finished, Kagome looked at her, eyes brimming with compassion. "I'm so sorry, Sango. I can't even imagine how hard this is for you."

"I'll be fine," Sango said stiffly, not wanting them to see her weakness.

"I know this might not be the best time," Miroku said, "but we're going to need to decide what to do about him at some point. We can't leave him enslaved to Naraku."

"If we kill Naraku, wouldn't that free him?" Inuyasha asked.

"Probably," Miroku said. "But we don't know how long it will take us to kill Naraku, or for that matter if we ever will." He held up a hand to stay any protests. "I don't like thinking about failure either, but it is a possibility. What happens if we do fail? Hayasaka could be left enslaved to Naraku for centuries, doing untold damage against his will. And, I hate to say it, but Hayasaka already made his wishes known."

"He did?" Inuyasha asked.

"When Sango and I first confronted him, he did," Miroku said.

Sango glared at him. "You can't expect me to kill my own father!"

"I would never ask that of you, Sango," Miroku said gently. "Never. But as for the rest of us…we may not have a choice in the matter."

After that statement, no one much felt like talking. They were a quiet group while they made camp and settled down for the night. As she lay on the ground, Sango listened as the breathing of the others quieted into the slow, steady rhythm of sleep. She wished she could find oblivion in sleep as well, but rest eluded her.

Rolling onto her side, Sango glanced about their camp. Everyone seemed to be sleeping peacefully, Inuyasha wrapped up in his bag with Shippo, Miroku off to the side with his staff in reach, and Kagome, directly across from her, leaning up against a tree with Tetsusaiga held in her grasp.

 _How can I even steal it from her? If I take it, she'll certainly wake up._

Sango considered her options; as a slayer she had several ways to deal with the situation, but they were mostly lethal, and Sango certainly didn't want to kill Kagome. Then Sango remembered a particular powder that she had; it was strong smelling, enough that for a demon with a very sensitive nose it could cause them to pass out for several minutes. It wouldn't give her a huge lead, but it might be enough.

Pulling the pouch with the powder out of one of her many hidden pockets, Sango carefully crept over to Kagome. Untying the pouch, Sango blew a decent amount of it into Kagome's face. Kagome's eyes snapped open, and Sango pressed her hand across Kagome's mouth before she could make any noise that might wake the others. It took only seconds for the smell to overwhelm Kagome; her eyes rolled back and she slumped over unconscious.

Sango let out a soft breath of relief and picked up the Tetsusaiga. For something that could transform into such a monstrous weapon, it was surprisingly light. She crept back over to Kirara and picked her up before moving away from the camp as quickly as she could while staying silent. Once she judged she had gone far enough, Sango set Kirara down.

"I need to you fly me," Sango told her.

Kirara blinked up at her once, and then transformed. Sango hoped she had made it far enough from the camp that the others wouldn't be woken up by the flames that accompanied this transformation. As soon as the transformation was over, Sango hopped on her back and Kirara took to the air. It didn't take long for them to make it back to the barrier, but Kirara couldn't go through.

"Just set me down here," Sango told her.

Kirara did as ordered, but her rumble clearly communicated that she didn't approve of Sango continuing on her own.

"I'll be fine," Sango assured her, hoping it was true. _I'm bringing Naraku the sword, so he should free Father._ She tried not to think about how her friends would react when the woke and discovered her betrayal.

Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, Sango moved forward. The walk to the castle this time felt much longer than it had the first time she had come through with Inuyasha and Miroku for company. But eventually she did arrive at the castle, which looked much more ominous by night than it had in the light of day.

This time there was no one at the gate to greet her, so she walked on through the gate and into the castle courtyard. Sitting on the porch that wrapped around the castle was Naraku. When she approached, he smiled at her. "Welcome back, Sango."

* * *

Inuyasha started into wakefulness, but unsure what exactly had woken him up. Glancing about for any disturbances, Inuyasha quickly noticed two things; Sango and Kirara were missing, and Kagome was slumped over in a way he'd never seen her sleep before.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried, jumping to his feet, his movements somewhat hampered by his sleeping bag. His noise woke Shippo and Miroku as he rushed over to check on Kagome.

He didn't see any injuries on her, but it was hard to see well by the dim light of their dying fire. But when he touched her face, Inuyasha felt something powdery coating her, and it let off a strong smell.

"What's happened?" Miroku demanded.

"Shippo, water bottle!" Inuyasha snapped, ignoring Miroku's question for the moment. Shippo quickly hopped over with a bottle, and snatching it, Inuyasha upended it over Kagome's head.

Sputtering, Kagome woke up. Relief flooded Inuyasha. "Thank goodness," he said.

"What happened?" Miroku asked again. "And where is Sango?"

"Sango!" Kagome said, shoving wet hair back from her face. "Sango tossed some kind of powder on me, and the smell was so strong it knocked me out!"

"But that doesn't make sense," Shippo said. "Why would Sango do something like that?"

Kagome looked to the side and gasped. "The Tetsusaiga! It's gone!"

"You don't think Sango took it, do you?" Inuyasha asked.

"I think," Miroku said quietly, "more happened when Hayasaka separated us from Sango than she admitted."

"If this does have something to do with what happened back at that castle, at least we know where to start looking for her," Kagome said standing up. "Let's go."

As they retraced their earlier path, Inuyasha mulled over the situation, trying to figure out what Sango's motives for stealing the Tetsusaiga could have been.

 _It's got to have something to do with her father and Naraku, but I just don't see how._

Well, he could see how Naraku could benefit by getting the Tetsusaiga away from Kagome. As she had just recently proved, her sword was a powerful weapon, and losing it would certainly damage Kagome's ability to fight powerful foes or large numbers of enemies. But how could Naraku have possibly convinced Sango to steal it?

They made it back to the barrier to find Kirara pacing back and forth in front of it. "Well, Sango definitely came this way," Miroku observed.

"No!" Kagome said. "If the barrier is still up, then I can't help you!"

"We'll be fine," Inuyasha said. "Miroku and I will get the sword back; and then we'll make Sango apologize for doing this to us."

Determined, the two of them continued on alone. _You hear that, Sango? We're coming for you!_

* * *

"Where's my father?" Sango demanded. "I want to see him before I give you the sword."

Naraku inclined his head. "Very well. Hayasaka."

A door behind Naraku slid open and her father stepped out onto the porch, his face expressionless. Naraku held out one hand. "Now, Sango. Hand over the Tetsusaiga."

Behind Naraku, Hayasaka gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head, but the movement was enough to keep Sango frozen in place.

 _He doesn't want me to do this. But I have to! I have to save him!_

But Hayasaka did not wish to be saved like this, and suddenly it occurred to Sango that she had no reason to believe that Naraku would even hold up his end of the deal. Once she handed over Kagome's sword, what was to stop him from just leaving and keeping Hayasaka his slave? Then she would have betrayed her friends for nothing, and potentially handed Naraku his key to victory in the bargain.

 _I can't do this. We have to defeat Naraku, whatever it takes. Even if…even if it means I never get my father back._

It felt like losing him all over again, giving up the hope that he could be saved by anything other than death. But it made her choices a little easier to make.

Walking towards Naraku, Sango raised the sword as though she were going to hand it over to him. But as he reached for the weapon, Sango yanked it out of its sheath and swung it at him in one smooth motion. Before it could connect, Hayaska pinned the blade under his curved tsuki nari spear. Naraku only seemed amused by her attempt at betrayal. "I see you wish to go back on our deal," he said. "Hayasaka, finish her."

Hayasaka kicked at her, and Sango was forced to let go of the Tetsusaiga in order to jumped back out of the way.

 _No! Now Naraku has the sword!_

Then she didn't have any time left to think as she defended herself from her father's blows.

* * *

Inuyasha and Miroku arrived on the scene to find Sango and Hayasaka fighting; though fighting might not be the right word, as it implied Sango was trying to attack Hayasaka in return, which she wasn't. She was using her hiraikotsu as a shield to try and fend off his blows, but her strategy wasn't working well, as evidenced by the cuts she had suffered, and the fact that she was clearly tiring at a faster rate than Hayasaka was.

Beyond them, watching the fight with a cruel smile on his face was a man that could only be Naraku. In one of his hands he held the Tetsusaiga in its untransformed state.

 _Save Sango first, get Naraku next._

Inuyasha and Miroku rushed in to attack Hayasaka, taking some of the pressure off of Sango. To his dismay, Hayasaka managed to hold them off with much more ease than he had previously. It soon became clear that they had defeated him earlier only because he had allowed them to. Now that Hayasaka was fighting them full out, it was all they could do to keep things at a stalemate.

 _We can't keep going like this! Sooner or later he'll get in a good hit, or Naraku will get tired of just watching and join in the fight,_ Inuyasha thought. _If that happens, I don't think we can hold both of them off on our own._

They had to put Hayasaka down somehow, but Inuyasha wasn't sure how they'd manage that. If only he could remove the tainted jewel shard from Hayasaka's chest, but doing that would kill him.

 _Or maybe, maybe I don't need to remove it at all._

Acting on a desperate gamble and knowing he'd only get one shot at this, Inuyasha dropped his staff so that he could have room to maneuver and dove under Hayaska's guard, springing up behind him to press a hand on Hayasaka's back. He felt a pulse of power, and Hayasaka shuddered. Then Hayasaka whirled around and threw his spear at Naraku, who just barely managed to deflect the throw with the Tetsusaiga. But Sango followed up her father's attack with a throw of her hiraikotsu, and that attack Naraku didn't have time to dodge or block. The weapon slammed into him, knocking him back inside the castle.

Inuyasha sprinted forward. Somehow Naraku was still in one piece, but he seemed dazed after the hit. Inuyasha grabbed the Tetsusaiga by the hilt, but Naraku's grip tightened reflexively on it.

"Let go, you bastard!" Inuyasha snarled as he tried to yank the weapon away from him. Power flowed down Inuyasha's arms, suddenly consuming Naraku with a wreath of light. Naraku's eyes widened with pain and shock as his arm disintegrated, followed by the rest of his body until all that was left was a dismembered head. Then it was Inuyasha's turn to be shocked as a dark, foul smelling miasma spewed from his destroyed body.

Coughing, Inuyasha stumbled away from the castle back toward Sango and Miroku. Shaking his head to clear it, Inuyasha looked up at his friends as they rushed to him.

"Inuyasha, are you alright?" Miroku asked.

"I think so," Inuyasha said. "That stuff smells awful, but I don't feel bad." He glanced around. "Where's Hayasaka?"

"He's gone," Sango said softly. "Your power freed him from Naraku's control, but only for a few seconds."

Disappointment washed over him. For a moment he'd thought he might have broken Naraku's hold on the older man permanently.

Then Kagome, Shippo, and Kirara ran through the gates of the castle. "Sango! Inuyasha! Miroku!" Kagome called. "Are you all okay?"

"Sango's hurt," Miroku replied. "Inuyasha breathed in some of Naraku's miasma, but he doesn't appear to be harmed."

Kagome went to Sango's side, her face creased with worry. "We'd better get those injuries tended to quickly," she said.

Sango stared at her for a moment, and then glanced at the rest of them. "Why?" she asked. "Why are you being so nice to me? I betrayed all of you."

"Naraku used your father against you somehow, didn't he?" Miroku asked.

Sango nodded. "He said he would free him, if I brought Naraku the Tetsusaiga."

"I don't think you could trust Naraku to keep his promises," Inuyasha said. "But if I were in your shoes…I might have done the same thing."

Tears filled Sango's brown eyes. "But," she protested, "you can't trust me! If Naraku threatens my father, I might betray you again!"

"You're our friend, Sango," Kagome said. "We're not going to turn you away."

The tears spilled over, and throwing her arms around Kagome, Sango sobbed. Inuyasha glanced away, uncomfortable watching her distress. Shippo hopped up on his shoulder. "You're really okay?" he asked softly. Inuyasha reached up and patted his head.

"Yeah, I'm okay," he said. "Not sure how that miasma didn't poison me, but I'm okay."

When Sango finally stopped crying a few minutes later, the Tetsusaiga was returned to Kagome and they made their way back to camp where Kagome bandaged Sango's injuries. As he settled down in his sleeping bag again, Inuyasha finally realized just how exhausted he was after all the day's events. Closing his eyes, he quickly fell asleep.

* * *

 **AN:** I'm back! So, this story isn't quite complete; I've got about five chapters left, which are outlined. But I'm feeling impatient about posting, and confident that I can finish those chapters before it's time to post. So then, here we are! I hope the wait hasn't been too long, and that you'll all continue to enjoy Changed!

If you'd like to keep an eye on my writing status for my different projects, follow me on tumblr where I go by the same pen name. I try to keep it updated with where I'm at on different stories.


	3. Chapter 3

Jinenji, Kind Yet Sad

In the morning, Inuyasha ended up preparing breakfast since Sango still didn't feel well. None of her injuries were terribly deep or life threatening by themselves, but she had a lot of them and they were painful.

 _At least some of them are going to scar,_ Inuyasha thought. It seemed like a shame to him, that Sango should have scars. For one thing, she was pretty, and for another, she was a girl. Girls shouldn't have scars.

 _And if I said that to her, she'd probably hit me,_ Inuyasha admitted to himself. Sango might be a girl, but she was also a fighter, and Inuyasha knew her well enough by now to know that saying anything that implied even indirectly that she shouldn't fight wouldn't go over well at all.

Since Inuyasha's culinary skills were quite limited, he fixed the last of his instant ramen for their breakfast. Before they'd finished eating, they suddenly heard Myoga's voice from Kagome's shoulder.

"Kagome, I came as fast as I could," Myoga said. "I've received word that Naraku is in the area!"

Kagome sighed and Inuyasha glared at the flea demon. "You're a little late with that information," Kagome said.

"What? You mean you already battled him?" Myoga asked.

"Yes, and he got away," Miroku said.

Inuyasha frowned. "But I pretty much destroyed his body," he said. "I mean, literally all that was left of him was a head; shouldn't that have killed him?"

"Most of the time I would agree with you," Miroku said, flexing his right hand. "But take my word for it, he isn't dead."

"Well that's just great," Inuyasha snapped. "If being reduced to a head doesn't kill him, what will?"

"I imagine we'll get the chance to find out," Kagome said. "But in the meantime, we need to find some medicine for Sango's injuries so they don't get infected."

"There I can be of assistance," Myoga said. "I have heard rumors of a garden not too far from here that supposedly grows some of the most effective herbs that might be found anywhere. Of course, these rumors also say that the garden is guarded by a demon."

"If it's dangerous, maybe we shouldn't go," Sango said.

"Don't be stupid," Inuyasha said. "You need medicine, so we'll get it for you. That's all there is to it."

"And you aren't going anywhere right now," Miroku said. "You need rest, or your injuries may become much more serious. I'll stay here with you to keep you safe while the others go."

"In that case, Shippo and Myoga should stay here to keep Sango safe from you," Inuyasha said dryly.

Shippo nodded sagely while Miroku sighed. "I can do that."

"Well, if we're going to go, we'd best get on our way," Kagome said, standing up. "Myoga, where's this garden?"

Myoga gave them the best directions he could, given he'd never been to this garden himself, and Kagome and Inuyasha set off. They started off in silence, but after a while, Kagome glanced at him and smiled. "You know, it's been a while since it was just the two of us traveling together."

"I guess it has been," Inuyasha said. It was kind of strange, it just being the two of them, but it certainly wasn't unpleasant. "I wonder if the rumors about the garden and demon are true."

"Probably," Kagome said. "Myoga's rumors are generally true. Although I'm not quite sure how he manages to hear them all."

Inuyasha grinned. "I bet he eavesdrops on conversations. He's so tiny, no one would notice him unless he spoke up or bit someone."

Kagome actually giggled, and the sound left Inuyasha feeling inordinately pleased. "You know, it wouldn't shock me if you were right."

They had walked for about an hour when they came upon a group of men, varying from middle aged to flat out old. The men were talking to each other, and so didn't notice Inuyasha and Kagome approaching. "There's been another death," one of them said.

One of the older men shook his head. "I tell you, it's Jinenji's doing. I always said no good would come of letting that monster live, and his witch mother too."

"We let him because his herbs were useful," another man said. "But if he's eating people now, maybe it's time we do something about him."

"Who's this Jinenji?" Kagome asked, startling the lot of them.

"Demon!" one of the cried out, pointing at Kagome.

Inuyasha glared at him. "So what? She's not going to attack you guys."

"Who are you?" one of the old men asked.

"We're just travelers," Kagome said. "A friend of ours is injured, and we were looking for medicine to help her."

"Ah, you'll be wanting Jinenji's garden then," the old man said. "But be warned, that monster has gone really bad; he's started eating people from the village."

Inuyasha frowned. That fit in with what Myoga had told them about the garden having a demon guard it.

"If he's hurting people, we can stop him," Kagome said.

"If you think so, we'll show you the way," the old man said.

The group of men led them off the path and through some woods so that they approached the garden from shelter. When Inuyasha saw it, he felt that calling it a garden might be an understatement. The garden was so large, he felt the term farm might be a better fit.

Working out in the fields was the demon, Jinenji. He was huge; if he stood up straight, Inuyasha was fairly sure he'd only come up to the demon's waist. His skin was orange and covered in scars, and his blue eyes seemed to bulge out of his elongated head.

 _Okay, so he looks the part of a scary demon._

But what Inuyasha could see wasn't quite matching up with what Inuyasha sensed. _His presence doesn't feel threatening at all, and it pulses the same way Kagome's does._

"He's a half demon," Inuyasha said with surprise.

"Half demon, demon, they're all the same," one of the men said.

Inuyasha glared at him, but Kagome didn't acknowledge his words even though there was no way that she could have missed hearing him.

"I'll handle this," she said instead. "Inuyasha, you stay here."

Inuyasha opened his mouth to protest that order, but Kagome had dashed to the field before he could speak.

"Do you really think she's strong enough to beat him?" one of the men wondered.

"Eh, if we're lucky, they'll kill each other," the old man said.

Inuyasha's temper flared and he whirled on the men. "How can you say that when she's risking her neck to protect _your_ village?"

The old man shook his head. "She's got demon blood in her. Perhaps you're just too young to realize it, but you can't trust anything that has demon blood. They all turn out bad in the end."

Inuyasha turned his back on them. If he kept speaking to them, he'd end up hitting them, and there was a reason he shouldn't. He wasn't sure what that reason was, but he knew one existed.

Watching Kagome and Jinenji, Inuyasha heard Kagome ask, "Are you the one that's been killing people?"

Jinenji stared at her, and impossible as it seemed, his already wide eyes seemed to grow even wider, but he didn't speak.

Kagome took another step toward him, and suddenly Jinenji turned and ran toward a hut, calling out, "Maaaa!"

 _What the?_

Kagome looked surprised at this reaction as well, and her surprise seemed to grow when an incredibly old but spry woman sprang out of the hut brandishing a hunk of firewood. "Leave my boy alone!" she ordered, swinging the firewood at Kagome's head.

Kagome sidestepped the blow easily. "I'm not going to hurt him!" she said.

Inuyasha heard the men sigh in disappointment. "Guess it was too much to hope she'd kill him after all," the old man said. "Let's go."

 _Get_ away _from the idiots._

Not watching them go, Inuyasha moved out of the shelter of the boulder they'd been hiding behind toward the hut. The old woman was still trying to club Kagome with the firewood. "Hey, lady!" Inuyasha called out to her. "She's telling the truth! We're not here to hurt Jinenji!"

The old woman finally paused in her attack on Kagome. "You mean to tell me the villagers didn't put you up to this?"

"They tried," Kagome said. "They told us that Jinenji had been killing villagers; but I don't smell any human blood on him at all. He hasn't killed anyone."

"Of course he hasn't!" the old woman snapped. "My boy wouldn't hurt a fly!"

Seeing the way Jinenji cowered by the hut like a kicked puppy, Inuyasha could believe it.

"What we're really here for," Inuyasha said, "is medicine. One of our friends is hurt, and we don't have any herbs to treat her with."

Jinenji actually looked up when Inuyasha said that. His mother glanced back at him and then sighed. "Oh, very well. Come on inside then."

Inuyasha and Kagome followed them inside the hut. Jinenji had to hunch over to avoid hitting the ceiling with his head.

"Have a seat," the old woman told them. She eyed Kagome. "So, you're a half demon too?"

Kagome nodded. "I am."

"Hmph," the woman said, poking her fire with a stick. "You're one of the lucky ones, then. For every one of you that's born pretty, well…There's one that ain't."

Kagome was pretty, but Inuyasha wasn't sure that her life had necessarily been any easier for it. After all, once her mother had passed away the humans she'd known had turned her out to fend for herself.

"It doesn't much matter either way, so long as you're different," Kagome said softly.

"I guess it doesn't at that," the old woman said. She shook her head and sighed. "Makes me ashamed to be human sometimes, as awful as we can act."

"Demons aren't really any better," Inuyasha said, thinking of Sesshomaru and how he had attempted to kill Kagome.

"That's true too," the old woman said. "Demons, humans; in the end, we're all a lot more alike than most would want to admit."

Inuyasha hadn't ever really thought about it before, but the old woman was right. Sure, he'd met plenty of evil demons here that had wanted to kill him, but he'd also met plenty that were nice. By the same token, humans weren't all good or all evil either.

 _If you look past the physical differences between humans and demons…Aren't we pretty much the same? Aren't we all just people?_

Jinenji turned to them, holding out one hand. "Here," he said. "Medicine for your friend."

Kagome took the pouch from him and smiled. "Thanks, Jinenji. How much do we owe you?"

"Nothing," the old woman said. "You can go on now."

Inuyasha prepared to stand, but hesitated when he saw that Kagome wasn't moving. "I want to help you," she said.

The old woman glared at her. "Help us how?"

"If people are dying, they're going to keep blaming Jinenji," Kagome said. "Eventually they'll be angry enough to try and do something about it. I'm going to find the real killer, and prove to them that it isn't Jinenji."

"You'll do what you want, I guess," the old woman said.

Kagome stood then, and Inuyasha followed her out of the hut. Before they went too far she stopped walking and looked over at him. "Inuyasha, I want you to stay here."

Inuyasha scowled. "You're not leaving me behind; I can handle whatever this thing is."

"I don't doubt you," Kagome said quickly. "It's just that I don't know how long this is going to take. I'm worried those village men will come back before I find the real killer. I want you to stay to keep an eye on Jinenji and his mother."

Inuyasha hesitated just a moment. "You really think they'll try to kill Jinenji when they don't have any proof that he's guilty?"

Kagome shrugged. "He's different from them. That means they don't need proof."

Inuyasha wasn't sure what made him sadder; the words that Kagome spoke, or the detached tone of voice she used when she said it.

"Alright," he said. "I'll stay."

* * *

Kagome tried to focus all her energy on finding the real killer, but a part of her mind kept drifting back to Jinenji and his mother. Spending time with them had brought up old memories and stirred up bitter emotions from her past.

In some ways her life had been very different in her younger years than Jinenji's. She's lived in a castle, not a hut, and none of the other humans had dared to ever lay a hand on her. Her mother may have been disgraced by her tryst with a demon, but she had still been a princess. No one was going to touch the daughter of a princess, even if that daughter was a half breed like Kagome. But there were ways of hurting people that didn't involve any kind of physical harm, and the courtesans she'd grown up around had been very skilled in their employment.

Kagome loved her mother, and she was certain that her father had been a good person. But there were some dark days when Kagome really wished the Dog General hadn't shown up in time to save them.

She shook her head to clear it of those thoughts. Now really wasn't the time to reminisce about her past. She had a killer demon to find, and miles of ground around the village to search. If she was going to find it quickly and end this mess for Jinenji and his mother, she had to focus.

She just hoped that the villagers didn't get impatient for blood before she succeeded.

* * *

"You still here?" the old woman asked.

Inuyasha jumped a little at the unexpected sound of her voice, and then turned back to the hut to face her. "Yeah," he said. "Kagome decided it would be better for me to wait for her here."

He decided not to add that this was because she was worried that the men of the village would decide to attack them. No need to concern them about something that might not actually happen, after all.

"Suit yourself," the old woman said. "We've got work to do."

She and Jinenji made their way out into the garden and were soon busy tending to the plants. Inuyasha decided to patrol the edge of their lands, keeping an eye out for any of the villagers that might be nearby. As he patrolled, he couldn't help but steal glances at Jinenji. It was mostly the scars that attracted Inuyasha's attention. He'd never seen anyone with that many scars before.

 _I bet it was the villagers that did that to him._

How badly had the villagers hurt him, to leave Jinenji with so many scars? It wasn't right that anyone should have to go through that, especially on account of something they'd had no control over. It wasn't like anyone could actually choose who their parents were. It just didn't make sense to Inuyasha how someone could hate a person because of who their parents happened to be.

After doing two laps around the perimeter, Inuyasha began to grow bored with his self imposed patrol duty. Surely the villagers wouldn't come back to attack Jinenji right now. Inuyasha approached Jinenji, careful not to step on any of the plants in the garden. Jinenji watched his approach, but didn't speak to him.

"So, is there anything I can do to help?" Inuyasha asked him.

"You can help pull the weeds," Jinenji offered, his voice low and soft.

Inuyasha nodded and crouched down among the plants, laying his staff to the side. As he looked at them, he realized one drawback of his plan. He had no idea which plants were supposed to be there, and which were the weeds. "Um, how do I tell what's a weed and what isn't?" Inuyasha asked. Jinenji's eyes were naturally so wide, it was impossible for Inuyasha to tell whether or not the question surprised him. But he explained the difference, and Inuyasha set to work.

Weeding was surprisingly more work than Inuyasha expected. His back soon ached from constantly crouching, and working out in the sun with no shade at all made it hot work. But if a woman as ancient as Jinenji's mother could handle it, Inuyasha certainly wasn't going to complain.

"Time for a water break," she eventually said.

Trying not to show his relief, Inuyasha stood and stretched his aching back. _Finally._

"You're a good worker," she said somewhat grudgingly when she gave him his water.

"Thanks," Inuyasha said. "I don't know how the two of you manage all this on your own."

"We're used to it," she said. "Besides, my husband taught us quite a bit about caring for it before he passed on."

Inuyasha's attention pricked up at the mention of her husband, who could only be Jinenji's demon father. "So this was his place?" Inuyasha asked.

Jinenji nodded. "Pa left it to us when he died."

"He was a good man," Jinenji's mother said. She sighed as she looked back on old memories. "I'll never forget the day I met him. I was very young then, and while I was out by myself I fell and injured my ankle so I couldn't walk. That's when he appeared, so beautiful I knew he couldn't possibly be human. I fell in love with him right away. I knew it would be a hard life for me if I stayed with him, but I didn't care. I loved him, and he loved me, and that was all that mattered."

Inuyasha wondered about that. Was love really all that mattered? What about Jinenji, and the pain he'd suffered his whole life, would continue to suffer for as long as he lived? Knowing the kind of life they would lead, why would anyone choose to have a half demon child?

Unease pricked at him as he remembered his own feelings for Kagome. Inuyasha wasn't in love with her, not by a long shot, but he did admire her. She was strong, compassionate, intelligent, kind, and pretty. With a combination like that, how could Inuyasha help but admire her? But would a long term relationship with her really work?

It was hard to think of a long term relationship with Kagome, especially since their official relationship right now didn't go beyond friendship. But say they did date, and one day even married. What then? What would married life with Kagome even be like? And if they got married, there was a good chance they'd end up having kids, and any children of Kagome's wouldn't be fully human. Would those kids end up facing the same kind of persecution that Kagome and Jineji faced, and if so, was it fair to have them in the first place?

 _Gah, this is too weird to think about. I haven't even told Kagome that I like her, and I have no idea if she would even want a relationship with me. It's way too early to think about what married life might be like, much less what our kids' lives might be like if we had any. Does Kagome even want kids? Wait, do_ I _even want kids?_

"Well, that's long enough for a break," Jinenji's mother said, interrupting Inuyasha's train of thought, which was a great relief to Inuyasha. "Let's get back to work."

They moved out into the garden again. Mostly to keep himself from his awkward thoughts, Inuyasha asked, "Hey, Jinenji, do you mind telling me about these plants? I mean, what are they, and what do they do?"

Inuyasha didn't really care about the plants, he just wanted to avoid thinking. But to his surprise, Jineji's softly spoken lecture about what each plant was and what it could be used for was actually interesting. Time seemed to fly by, and before he knew it, the sun was beginning to set and Jinenji's mother was calling a halt to their work.

"Time for some supper," she said. "When is your friend coming back?"

"I don't know," Inuyasha said. "Whenever she manages to slay the demon that's been eating people, I guess. Hopefully she'll be back soon."

After they ate dinner, Inuyasha decided to do one more patrol around the area to make sure the villagers were still keeping clear. He yawned as he walked; the work that afternoon had tired him out far more than he'd expected. _Probably because I was out in the sun all day. Kind of wish Kagome and I could just spend the night here and return to the others in the morning, but the others are probably getting worried about us right now._ It was really inconvenient that they didn't have phones in the Feudal Era. If they did, Inuyasha could just call up the others and explain what was going on.

 _Bet if they knew, they'd come as back up. They'd want to clear Jinenji's name too._

A twig snapped behind Inuyasha. He started to turn, but something hit the back of his head hard enough to make him see stars. He tumbled over on the ground, and before he could regain his bearings, someone had roughly tied his hands and feet, and shoved a gag in his mouth. Blinking the spots out of his eyes, Inuyasha saw the village men standing over him, armed with spears and swords.

"There," the old man said. "Now you won't be able to warn them."

Inuyasha struggled against his bonds, but the villagers had tied them securely. There was no way he was getting out of them, not without help.

"You're human, and we have no quarrel with you," the old man continued. "Once we take care of the demon that's been killing our people, we'll let you go."

Inuyasha tried to scream at them to stop, that Jinenji hadn't hurt anyone and never would, but the gag prevented any of his words from being understood. He could only watch, totally helpless, as the villagers hefted their weapons and started toward the hut.

* * *

It had taken Kagome far longer than she had wished to track down the lair of the demon. She hadn't known what kind of demon she was looking for, and she hadn't had any idea of where to even start looking, which made her task that much harder. But finally she did locate the nest, and she recognized the reek of a centipede demon. She could smell the stink of dead humans as well, but that wasn't the most alarming thing she found.

"Eggs," she whispered in horror. "They're hatched."

But none of them were here, which could only mean one thing. Their mother had taken them out, to teach them how to hunt.

 _Inuyasha!_

* * *

With his hands and feet bound, Inuyasha couldn't even manage to stand up. He could only lay in the dirt and watch as the villagers lit torches and threw them on top of the roof of the hut, which caught fire easily. The old woman rushed outside and screamed for them to go, to leave her and her son alone.

Inuyasha couldn't hear what the men said in response, but he could see them throwing rocks at her, and at least one of them hit her in the head, causing her to fall over.

 _No, stop it! She's just a helpless old woman!_

But none of the villagers seemed to care, as they shouted and jeered and threw more torches in the hut's windows. Inuyasha's heart pounded with desperation as he yanked at his bonds, trying to work his hands free, heedless of the pain it caused him. The walls of the hut had caught fire now, but Jinenji still hadn't come out.

Tears of helpless frustration filled Inuyasha's eyes. He was _useless_ ; Kagome had left him there to protect Jinenji and his mother, and now because of his carelessness they were going to die.

There was rustling behind him, and Inuyasha twisted his head, hoping to see Kagome coming. But what came from the woods wasn't Kagome, and the sight turned Inuyasha's blood to ice. It was a centipede demon, though unlike Mistress Centipede, this demon only had a woman's head instead of the whole upper body of a woman. She was followed by a bunch of smaller centipede demons, likely her children, and there Inuyasha lay, directly in their path and totally helpless.

 _No,_ Inuyasha thought. _No, this can't be happening!_

The baby centipede's descended on him, but then there was a flash of light, and they reared away from him badly burned. Around him was a softly glowing pink barrier. Inuyasha had no idea how he had managed to do this, but he prayed it wouldn't fail before Kagome arrived.

The mother centipede leaned over him, testing his barrier, but it crackled with power when she got too close. Pulling away, she hissed, and then she and her children moved around him and went on toward the villagers, who were too consumed with their task to notice the danger descending upon them, and because Inuyasha was gagged, he had no way to warn them.

 _They're going to die,_ Inuyasha realized as the centipede demons made their way toward them. He wasn't sure he felt sorry for them.

The villagers didn't notice the presence of the centipede demons until the children fell on one of them. His screams were short lived as they ripped him apart. Feeling sick, Inuyasha had to look away.

"Inuyasha!"

His barrier collapsed as Kagome landed beside him, and in a second her claws severed through his gag and the ropes binding him. "Save them!" he gasped, pushing himself up off the ground. Before the words were even completely out of his mouth, Kagome was running toward the fight. Inuyasha snatched up his staff and ran after her, but she made quick work of the centipede demons, and by the time he made it, she had slain them all. Several of the villagers were dead, and most of the others were injured.

"Y-you saved us," one of them stammered.

Kagome glared at him, her golden eyes gleaming dangerously in the firelight. "Get out of here," she snarled, "or I'll kill you myself!"

Helping the injured along, the villagers left as quickly as they could manage. Inuyasha spoke as he moved to the old woman's side. "Kagome, Jinenji is still inside the hut!"

Kagome just shook her head and sheathed her sword. "He's dead, Inuyasha. If he weren't, I'd hear him."

 _No._

Inuyasha checked Jinenji's mother for a pulse, but couldn't find one. He didn't really expect to find one, not with the way the side of her head had caved in under the force of the rock that had hit her, but he couldn't stop himself from checking anyway. Sickened and angry, Inuyasha backed away from her corpse and stared at the flames that had by now completely consumed the hut.

 _This is all so wrong._

Inuyasha heard a heavy thud behind him and whirled around. Kagome had fallen to her knees and hit the ground with her fist, creating a small indention in the ground. "If I had just been faster," she said. "If I could have found the nest before the eggs hatched, if I'd gotten here quicker…"

Inuyasha went to her. "It's not your fault, Kagome," he said, crouching down in front of her. "It's not. You tried your best to save them."

She raised her head to look at him, and Inuyasha could see the tears pouring down her face. "It wasn't enough. My best wasn't enough to save them."

What could he say to that? At least Kagome had managed to do something; Inuyasha had been worse than useless. There were no words for a situation like this, but Inuyasha felt like he needed to do something.

Leaning forward, Inuyasha wrapped his arms around Kagome in a hug. She froze for a second, but then her arms came up around him, and she clung to him as she sobbed. Inuyasha just held her while she cried.

 _It isn't fair. It isn't fair at all. Jinenji wasn't a monster; the people that killed him were._

Finally, Kagome's sobs lessened, and Inuyasha took a deep breath. "Come on," he said. "Let's get back to the others."


	4. Chapter 4

Home Again

Kagome and Inuyasha took the time to bury Jinenji's mother before they left, but neither of them had the heart or the stomach to dig through the rubble left of the burned out hut for Jinenji's remains. It was late in the night when they made it back to the campsite where they'd left the others. Sango was sleeping, Kirara curled around her in her larger form, but Miroku, Shippo, and Myoga had remained awake waiting for them around the campfire.

"You're back!" Shippo cried, jumping into Inuyasha's arms. His shout was loud enough that it woke Sango up.

"Thank goodness," Miroku said. "We were really beginning to worry; no one expected you to be gone this long."

"You're hurt," Shippo said with alarm, looking at Inuyasha's wrists.

Inuyasha looked down at the injuries; he'd rubbed his wrists raw in his attempt to escape the ropes. "Looks worse than it is," he said, which was true enough. They stung, but didn't hurt too bad so long as he didn't move them much.

"What happened?" Myoga asked.

Kagome just shook her head. "We'll talk about it in the morning." She moved to Sango. "We got the medicine. Let me see your injuries."

Inuyasha sat down on his sleeping bag, letting Shippo settle in his lap. He was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. He wanted to sleep, but a part of him was afraid to. He didn't want to deal with nightmares.

Miroku crouched by him and held out a water bottle. "You should clean those injuries," he said in a neutral tone of voice. "When Kagome has finished tending to Sango, you should use some of the medicine yourself; you wouldn't want that to become infected."

Inuyasha mechanically accepted the water bottle and poured the water over his wrists. He hissed with pain as the water made them sting worse than ever, but he knew Miroku was right so he kept it up until the bottle was empty. Miroku accepted it back from him when he was done.

A few minutes later, Kagome came over. "I've finished with Sango," she said, kneeling in front of Inuyasha. Gently, she spread some of the medicine that Jinenji had provided over Inuyasha's wrists. The paste felt cool and soothing to his abused skin. Then, using some spare bandages, Kagome wrapped them.

"Thanks," Inuyasha said. She nodded, and then moved away. Inuyasha settled back on his sleeping bag, and Shippo curled up into his side. Inuyasha closed his eyes and listened to the crackling of their campfire. Most nights, the noise was soothing to listen to as he fell asleep; tonight, it really wasn't.

* * *

As they traveled the next day, Inuyasha and Kagome took turns telling the story of what had happened to them the day before. When they finished, Miroku shook his head. "It really is sad, the things that fear can make a person do."

"If only they'd contacted the slayers instead of trying to handle it themselves," Sango said. "They'd have figured out Jinenji wasn't to blame, and the villagers would have been more likely to listen to them."

That was probably true. The villagers hadn't trusted Kagome at all since she was a half demon, and they hadn't really trusted Inuyasha either because he trusted her. If they'd had professional demon slayers telling them that Jinenji was innocent, it might have made a difference.

But the slayers hadn't been there, and Kagome and Inuyasha had. _And we failed; we didn't protect Jinenji or his mother._

Inuyasha just wanted to go home. He'd been here a week now, and he really wanted to be somewhere that people weren't trying to kill each other.

To his immense relief, they didn't run into any other dangerous situations on their way back, and they made it to the village late in the evening. Inuyasha didn't waste time going into the village to speak to Kaede, but made straight for the well. Eagerly, he went down the well and arrived back in his own time.

When Inuyasha left the well house, he stared at his home for a minute. It looked warm and cheerful in the night, with the windows lit up from the lights within. He could picture what would be going on inside; Souta would be getting ready for bed, his mother cleaning up after dinner and preparing Souta's lunch for the next day, Gramps settling on the couch with something to read before he went to bed. It was comfort and safety, and inside those walls he didn't have to worry about anyone trying to attack him.

Letting out a breath, Inuyasha went inside. Gramps looked up from his book as he entered. "Inuyasha, you're back!"

Mrs. Higurashi quickly appeared from the kitchen. "Inuyasha!" She hugged him. "Thank goodness! I was beginning to worry about you. I didn't expect you to be gone so long."

Inuyasha hugged her back. "Sorry, Mom. Some unexpected stuff came up that delayed us."

"Inuyasha!" Souta came stumbling down the stairs and threw his arms around Inuyasha's waist in a hug. "You're finally home!"

Inuyasha smiled and ruffled his little brother's hair. "Hey, squirt. Did you miss me?"

"Of course!" Souta said. "Are you staying home for a while this time?"

"I think you'd better," Mrs. Higurashi said. "Your teacher Ms. Sato has been calling about you. I've told her you had a bad case of the flu, but I don't think she believes me."

That came as no shock. "Okay," Inuyasha said. "I'll stay a while. All of next week, as long as no emergencies come up in the past."

"Let me fix you a plate of food," Mrs. Higurashi said. "You must be starving."

Inuyasha allowed her to usher him into the kitchen and sat at the table while she bustled about getting food. Gramps and Souta followed. "What happened this time?" Souta asked eagerly.

Inuyasha told them an abbreviated version of his story, telling them about the fake water god and finding Naraku, but he left out everything that had happened with Jinenji. He didn't feel up to talking about that with his family.

 _Sensei,_ he thought. _I need to talk to Sensei._

But it was much too late to go by Sensei's home now, and tomorrow he'd need to go to school. Talking to Sensei would have to wait.

While he ate, Mrs. Higurashi spotted the bandages around Inuyasha's wrists and gasped. "Inuyasha, what happened to your wrists?"

"Oh, that," Inuyasha said. "It isn't a big deal; probably don't even really need a doctor to look at them."

Which wasn't a real answer to her question, but what was he supposed to tell her? That a murderous mob of villagers had bound him hand and foot while they'd carried out their evil deed?

Inuyasha stood. "Thanks for the food, Mom. But I think I'm going to turn in now."

She pursed her lips, clearly unhappy, but she didn't press him for more information. "Goodnight, then."

Wishing Souta and Gramps goodnight as well, Inuyasha retreated to his room.

* * *

Friday was overcast and gray, which suited Inuyasha's mood just fine, though he did his best to pretend to be cheerful for his family. It was a relief to leave for school and not have to pretend anymore. As he made it to the gates, Inuyasha heard Hojo call out his name.

"It's great to see you!" Hojo grinned. "You were gone a whole week this time, and you didn't warn me you were leaving."

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "Some unexpected stuff came up…I'll tell you about it later."

"Oh, before I forget," Hojo said, digging through his bag. "Mom sent you some tea from the shop that's supposed to boost your immune system so you don't get sick so often." He shrugged as he handed the box of tea over. "I know you don't really need it, but I promised her I'd give it to you."

Inuyasha accepted the tea. "Tell her I said thanks."

"She still wants you to come over for dinner," Hojo added.

"Tell her I'll come over tomorrow," Inuyasha said. "I'm planning to be here, and a break from makeup work will be nice, since that's probably what I'll be doing all day."

"Hey, I have an idea," Hojo said. "Why don't you come over to my place in the morning, and I can help you with your makeup work, that way you don't have to figure it all out on your own."

Inuyasha brightened some at the suggestion. "Yeah, that's a great idea. Thanks, Hojo."

Hojo grinned and patted him on the shoulder. "What are friends for?"

The warning bell rang, and they rushed to class so they wouldn't be late. They always started with homeroom, so Inuyasha had to face Ms. Sato first thing. _It's okay, it isn't like she can interrogate me in front of the whole classroom._

She went through the roll call, and as soon as it was finished, she said, "Inuyasha, outside, now."

 _Well, crap._

The other students started whispering as Inuyasha stood and made his way out of the classroom, until Ms. Sato gave them some assignment to keep them busy before following Inuyasha out into the hall herself.

"Your mother informed me that you had the flu," Ms. Sato said as soon as the door slid shut. "I'll need to see your doctor's note of course."

Inuyasha sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "I forgot to bring it."

Her eyes narrowed behind her glasses, and Inuyasha was sure she was about to accuse him of lying, but she didn't. What she said instead was far worse. "Inuyasha, I'm going to be calling your mother to arrange a meeting. You've been missing far too much school. Miss any more, and your chances of moving on to the next grade get much smaller."

"Yes ma'am," he said.

She waved him back into class, and Inuyasha settled into his seat. _This is just great. Now what am I supposed to do?_

If only Ms. Sato would quit digging into the reasons for his absences, his life would be so much easier. It was a pity he couldn't just explain to her what was going on, but there was simply no way she'd believe his explanation. Inuyasha wanted to avoid being labeled crazy if at all possible.

The school day dragged on, and Inuyasha collected his mounds of makeup work. His only consolation was that he wouldn't be facing it on his own since Hojo had offered to help him with it.

"Did Ms. Sato grill you on your absences again?" Hojo asked as they walked toward Sensei's dojo.

"Not exactly," Inuyasha said. "I don't think she really expects me to admit anything to her at this point. But she said she's going to call my mother to arrange a parent teacher meeting about my absences."

Hojo winced. "She's really getting serious about finding out what's going on, isn't she?"

Inuyasha sighed heavily. "Yeah, she is. I don't know what to do about her. I mean, I can't tell her the truth, there's no way she'd believe me, but I can't think of any kind of story to get her to back off either."

"Stuck between a rock and a hard place, as they say," Hojo mused. "I wish there was something I could do to help."

Inuyasha shrugged. "You're helping a ton by giving me a hand with this makeup work. Ms. Sato is a problem I'll have to deal with on my own."

At the dojo they split ways, and Inuyasha changed quickly in the locker room in order to avoid questions about where he'd been. _I hope training isn't too hard on my wrists. I mean, it's only rope burn, so I should be okay, right?_

He was fine through the stretches and warm up exercises, with only minor twinges of pain. The trouble came when they broke up into pairs for sparring. The first time Inuyasha blocked a blow from his partner, it hit the back of Inuyasha's wrist directly on the rope burn. It felt like his whole forearm was on fire. Swearing with the pain, Inuyasha broke contact while his partner backed off when he saw that Inuyasha was in genuine distress.

Sensei immediately made his way over to them. "What happened?" he demanded. His eyes narrowed when he saw the bandages on Inuyasha's wrist.

"It's not his fault," Inuyasha said, quick to defend the innocence of his sparring partner. "I didn't think they would bother me…" He trailed off as Sensei's scowl deepened.

"And you didn't warn me you were hurt before class started, why?" Sensei prompted.

"Um, it didn't seem like a big deal then?" Inuyasha said.

"You're sitting out the rest of practice," Sensei snapped.

Inuyasha was smart enough to realize that sitting out didn't mean he had permission to go home, so he didn't bother going to change back into his regular clothes yet, but went and sat in the waiting area. Sensei would undoubtedly want to chew him out for his stupidity in private, and Inuyasha wanted to talk to him anyway.

 _I wonder if Kagome came for training today,_ Inuyasha thought as he watched the others sparring. He decided she probably hadn't, given she normally would have stopped by to see him in the morning and walk to Sensei's together. _Since she didn't come today, I should probably go back tomorrow to let them know that I won't be going back for a week._

When class ended, Sensei motioned for Inuyasha to follow him into his office. Once the door was closed for privacy, Sensei said, "Should I even bother asking if you've had a doctor look at that?"

"It's just a rope burn," Inuyasha said. "It isn't that big of a deal. As long as nothing hits it, I mean."

Sensei shook his head and sighed. "What happened?"

Inuyasha told him about everything that had happened in the past. His voice faltered when he came to the part about Jinenji and his mother. He hadn't told anyone else that story yet, and it was hard saying out loud how useless he had been when it came to helping them.

When he finished, Sensei was silent for a minute. Finally he said, "It's not your fault, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha shook his head. "I was there! I should have been able to do something!"

"Sometimes horrible things happen, and there's nothing anyone can do about it," Sensei said. "Just because you couldn't stop it doesn't make it your fault."

"But," Inuyasha started.

"Would you hold Kagome at fault for their deaths?" Sensei interrupted.

"No," Inuyasha admitted quietly.

"Then you can't blame yourself for this either," Sensei said. "The two of you must be equally at fault, or equally innocent. You can't have it both ways."

Inuyasha was quiet. What Sensei said made sense, but didn't exactly make him feel better all the same.

"Come on," Sensei said, heading for the door.

"Where are we going?" Inuyasha asked.

"To see Haruki. I want him to look at your wrists," Sensei said.

Inuyasha didn't argue. It couldn't hurt to have an actual doctor look at them, and this way he might be able to get another note from Dr. Haruki to excuse his absence from school.

 _Although, he wasn't really happy about giving me a note last time. He might not want to do it again._

Sensei stopped by his house for a moment to let Usagi know he was going out for a bit, and then they walked toward Dr. Haruki's clinic. As they walked, Inuyasha asked, "Hey, Sensei, do you think Dr. Haruki would be willing to write me another note for school?"

"He will," Sensei said without pausing to think about it.

"Really?" Inuyasha asked in surprise. "I mean, he didn't seem like he wanted to before."

"I explained to him the real reason why you were missing so much school," Sensei said.

Inuyasha's jaw dropped. "You did what?"

"I had a feeling you'd need his help again, so I went ahead and told him the truth," Sensei said. "I don't think he completely believes me, but he knows me well enough to know that I don't lie, so he's willing to at least consider that it might be true."

Inuyasha wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. The idea that anyone outside of his family, Hojo, and Sensei might believe the story about his adventures in the past had seemed so out there he hadn't even considered it as a real possibility. To suddenly find out that a near total stranger knew, and even halfway believed, left him with mixed feelings.

When they made it to Dr. Haruki's clinic, the closed sign had already been hung. As before Sensei ignored the sign and banged on the door. A moment later, it was opened by Dr. Haruki, who just glanced over them a moment before sighing and saying, "Come on in."

They followed him into his office and Dr. Haruki asked, "What seems to be the problem?"

It took a moment for Inuyasha to realize that Sensei didn't intend to answer the question. "Um, rope burn on my wrists."

"Sit," Dr. Haruki said motioning to the exam table before washing his hands. Inuyasha sat as Dr. Haruki pulled on a pair of gloves. "How did you get the injury?"

Inuyasha glanced over at Sensei, who motioned for him to continue. Feeling distinctly uncomfortable, Inuyasha said, "I was tied up."

"I would never have guessed," Dr. Haruki said dryly as he unwrapped the bandages around Inuyasha's wrists.

Inuyasha glared at him. "You asked."

"So I did," Dr. Haruki said. "But I was expecting a little more detail than that in your reply."

"Not much else to tell," Inuyasha grumbled.

Dr. Haruki cleaned off Inuyasha's wrists and examined them. "Not as bad as it could be. You've kept them clean at least." He went to the cabinets and got out a tube of cream. While spreading the cream on Inuyasha's wrists, Dr. Haruki asked, "Did you get any other injuries during this incident?"

"I got hit on the back of the head," Inuyasha admitted.

Dr. Haruki nodded. He wrapped Inuyasha's wrists once more. "Keep the cream, and apply it every day until your wrists heal completely. Try not to aggravate them. That means limiting your training sessions, and avoiding fights."

Inuyasha nodded. The instructions were more or less what he'd expected.

Dr. Haruki threw away his soiled gloves and pulled on a new pair. "Have you experienced any headaches, dizziness, or nausea since you were hit?"

"No," Inuyasha said.

"How long has it been since it happened?" Dr. Haruki asked.

"Two days," Inuyasha said.

"Bend your head down," Dr. Haruki ordered.

Inuyasha obeyed, and felt the doctor's fingers running over the back of his head. "No bumps, that's good," he said. "Do you feel any pain anywhere?"

"No," Inuyasha said.

"Good," Dr. Haruki said stepping back. "Look at me."

Inuyasha looked and got a flashlight shown in his eyes. He blinked at the unexpected brightness, but before he could protest it Dr. Haruki flicked the light off and stuck the small flashlight back in his coat pocket. "Looks like you don't have a concussion. Is there anything else that you need?"

"I could use another note for school," Inuyasha ventured. Sensei had said the doctor would be willing to give him the note after all.

Dr. Haruki nodded, though he didn't look all that pleased by the request. "What dates were you out, and what is the excuse supposed to be?"

Inuyasha gave him the information and Dr. Haruki scribbled it on some stationary and handed it over. "There you go."

"Thanks," Inuyasha said.

Dr. Haruki slipped his hands into the large pockets of his coat and said, "It's what I do."

Sensei started to lead the way out, but Dr. Haruki called after them with a question. "What did cause your first injury?" he asked. "Obviously you didn't fall on a rock. Think you could tell me the truth since I know about your adventures in the past now?"

Inuyasha hesitated for a moment and then said, "I was stabbed by a demon toad's tongue."

Dr. Haruki's deadpan stare easily rivaled Sensei's. "A demon toad's tongue," he repeated.

It did sound fairly ridiculous, especially if one hadn't been there. "It's a long story," Inuyasha said.

"I imagine so," Dr. Haruki said. "I wouldn't mind hearing it sometime, if you feel up to telling it."

Inuyasha was surprised by the request and unsure how he should respond to it. _Odds are he just wants to figure out if I'm actually crazy or something._ "Okay, sometime," Inuyasha said, trying to be polite while avoiding actually committing to tell the doctor anything.

They left the office then, and Inuyasha said, "I'd better hurry home. Mom wouldn't have expected me to stay out this long after school today."

Sensei nodded. "I understand. Is Kagome planning to come train with me tomorrow?"

"I'm not sure," Inuyasha said. "I expect so."

"Then I'll keep an eye out for her," Sensei said. "You go on home."

Inuyasha hurried on his way, glad to be away from that strange situation. When he got home he found his family had almost finished eating already.

"Inuyasha, where have you been?" his mother asked.

"Sorry, Mom," Inuyasha said. "Sensei kept me after class for a while." He didn't mention the visit to Dr. Haruki's office.

He settled into his seat and filled his plate with food. "Inuyasha, I've been meaning to tell you," Gramps started. "I've been doing research into the Shikon Jewel and its appearances in the past like you asked, but I'm afraid I haven't had much luck finding anything you can use. I've found plenty of information about the effects it can have, but I haven't found anything about where it may have been located at any point in time. For that matter, I can't find any references to a period of time when the jewel was broken, not even in fragments of legends."

Inuyasha frowned, and made sure to swallow his food before he spoke. "That's weird. I mean, the jewel breaking has been a pretty big deal in the past. How could there not even be legends about it breaking?"

Gramps shook his head. "Beats me. If I didn't know any better, I'd say someone had purposely erased all concrete information about the jewel from history."

"Who'd want to do something like that?" Souta asked.

"No idea," Inuyasha said. "I mean, who'd benefit from doing that?" Still, the information left Inuyasha with a sense of unease. _I'll have to tell the others about this. Maybe they can come up with some ideas._

"By the way, Mom," Inuyasha said. "I'm going to Hojo's house tomorrow. He promised to help me with my makeup work."

Mrs. Higurashi smiled. "That's nice of him. You'll have to think of a way to thank him."

Inuyasha didn't see why there needed to be any more fuss than a simple thank you, but there was no point in trying to argue with his mother. Besides, chances were she'd never actually ask him how he thanked Hojo for helping.

"Since Hojo's helping you tomorrow, can you hang out with me tonight?" Souta asked eagerly.

"Sure, squirt," Inuyasha said.

"Great!" Souta said. "I just got a new movie, and we can watch it together."

While Inuyasha finished eating, Souta described the movie. His description wasn't easy to follow, but Inuyasha figured out it was some kind of action movie, involving brave heroes fighting alien monsters. It was the sort of movie Inuyasha would have normally enjoyed, but when he finally sat down to watch the movie he found it far less enjoyable than he'd expected.

 _I guess it's hard to get worked up over fake monsters after I've seen the real thing._

* * *

AN: After reading some of the reviews for the last chapter, I got the feeling that I should clarify something. Changed is most definitely going to be darker in tone than Switched was. It won't be all doom and gloom every chapter, but bad things are going to keep happening, and some characters that survived in the show are not going to make it in this story.

When it comes to writing, I'm a firm believer that things should get worse for characters before they get better. In Changed, things are going to get worse.


	5. Chapter 5

Living for the Weekend

Waking up early on a Saturday morning was never pleasant. But there were certainly worse ways to wake up on a Saturday than finding Kagome's pretty face leaning over him. "Why are you here so early?" Inuyasha asked.

"Training with Sensei," Kagome said. "How come you aren't up yet? Are you sick?"

Inuyasha yawned and stretched, and Kagome stepped back to give him room. "I'm not sick. I don't have school today, so I don't get up as early as usual."

Understanding dawned on her face and she blushed. "Oh. Sorry I woke you up."

Inuyasha shrugged. "It's okay. I'm kind of getting used to early mornings at this point." After all, camping outside in the feudal era generally didn't allow him to sleep any later than sunrise. "Wait downstairs for me; I'll be dressed in a few minutes."

Kagome left his room, and Inuyasha quickly dressed, throwing on the first clean shirt and jeans that he found. Ducking into the bathroom, Inuyasha brushed his teeth and hair before heading downstairs. He found that Kagome had also changed into her own pair of jeans and shirt. It really was odd to see her in modern clothes, but she looked nice.

"Would you like some tea before we go?" Inuyasha offered, keeping his voice low so as not to wake the rest of his family.

"Yes, please," Kagome said, matching his level of speaking.

In the kitchen Inuyasha put on a kettle of water to boil and tried to decide what he might want to eat for breakfast. _I wish Mom was up already. I can't cook anything that isn't instant._ He settled on a piece of fruit and offered some to Kagome who declined.

"How long are you staying this time?" Kagome asked as they waited for the water to boil.

"I'll have to stay here until next Saturday," Inuyasha said. "My teacher at school is really giving me a hard time about missing so much."

Kagome frowned. "When is this Saturday?"

"Oh, right," Inuyasha said. "You guys haven't started using the calendar we use now…Um, we've given the days of the week different names now. Today is Saturday, and seven days from now it'll be Saturday again." He went on to explain the names of the other days of the week, and Kagome seemed to absorb the information quickly.

"I see," Kagome said. "So you'll be here for seven days. I'll let the others know when I go back this afternoon."

The kettle whistled as the water finally boiled, and Inuyasha fixed their tea. Kagome thanked him when he handed her a cup. "Will you be training with Sensei today?" she asked.

Inuyasha shook his head. "I can't. I'm under orders not to do anything that might irritate my wrists right now. Anyway, I'm going to Hojo's house today. He's going to help me catch up on some of the work I've missed at school."

She took a sip of her tea and then asked, "Inuyasha, why is it such a big deal if you miss school? What goes on there, exactly?"

"People go to school to get educated," Inuyasha said trying to think of a simple way to explain it. "Now days, everyone is required to go to school for at least nine years. After those years are up, a person can quit going to school and work, or they can choose to keep going and get more education for more complicated jobs."

Kagome seemed surprised by his answer. "Everyone is educated in this time?"

Inuyasha nodded. "Pretty much. This is my ninth year of education, so I'm still required to attend school right now. If I don't attend enough days, I could get held back and made to repeat the ninth year." He hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should go on to explain how things could potentially end up worse than that, since Ms. Sato was convinced there was something dangerous going on. Which of course there was, though certainly not the kind of danger she might be thinking of.

Before he could make up his mind on the matter, his mother entered the kitchen. Judging by the robe wrapped over her pajamas, she'd just gotten up. "Good morning," she said.

"Good morning," Inuyasha replied. "Sorry, were we too loud?"

Mrs. Higurashi shook her head. "Who can stay in bed when that wonderful smell of tea is floating in the air? Are you staying for breakfast, Kagome?"

"No, ma'am," Kagome said. "I need to get on to Sensei's dojo for training."

"I'm going to walk her there," Inuyasha said. "But I'll be back for breakfast."

"You already ate something," Kagome pointed out, but Inuyasha waved her words away.

"Fruit alone is not a satisfying breakfast," he said. "Not when I can have some of Mom's cooking."

"How sweet," Mrs. Higurashi said with a smile. "You two had better get going. You don't want to keep Sensei waiting."

They left then, and by this time the sun was well up, but it was still far too early for many people to be out and about yet, especially on a Saturday. The weather was nice, and it was a pleasant walk to Sensei's dojo. When they arrived, Inuyasha wasn't all that surprised to find that Sensei was already up. Sometimes he wondered if the man ever actually slept.

"Good morning," they greeted him, and he nodded in return.

"Kagome, I'm glad you could come today," Sensei said. He glanced over at Inuyasha. "Will you be coming to pick her up?"

Inuyasha shook his head. "I can't today. I'll be at Hojo's all day, working on my makeup work for school."

Sensei nodded. "Very well. Kagome, let's begin."

Inuyasha left quickly to get out of their way, though a part of him wouldn't have minded staying to watch for a while. By the time he made it back home, Gramps was up and about as well, and Mrs. Higurashi had breakfast cooking.

"Inuyasha, will you wake Souta up?" she called to him as he entered the house.

"Sure thing, Mom," Inuyasha said. He went upstairs and found Souta still cocooned in his blankets. Merciless, Inuyasha flipped the bedroom light on, causing Souta's eyes to blink open before screwing shut again as he burrowed deeper into his blankets. "Time to get up, squirt!" Inuyasha said.

"I don't want to!" Souta complained from beneath his blankets.

"Breakfast is almost ready," Inuyasha said. "Come on, get up."

Souta refused to move, so Inuyasha sighed. "Fine, but you asked for this." Taking hold of Souta's blanket in both hands, Inuyasha dragged it off the bed. Of course, by that time Souta was so wrapped up in his blankets that he came tumbling off the bed as well, landing on the floor with a thump and a yelp of protest. "Now, up and at 'em!" Inuyasha said.

Souta managed to kick off his blankets and glare up at Inuyasha. "You're so mean!" Souta complained.

Inuyasha just grinned at him and ruffled his already messy hair. "Yeah, yeah. One of the perks of being a big brother."

Inuyasha went downstairs, and decided to wait at the table for Mrs. Higurashi to finish making breakfast. "Smells good," he complimented.

She smiled at him over her shoulder. "Thank you, Inuyasha."

Gramps laid down the newspaper he had been reading with a sigh. "Looks like they're still investigating all those people who went missing thanks to that cursed Noh mask. Some crackpots are trying to claim aliens were involved, of all things."

Some of Inuyasha's good mood leached away. "What?" He hadn't thought about the Noh mask incident in a while. But it made sense that people would be investigating still. After all, the only ones that knew what had really happened were Inuyasha's family, Kagome, and Sensei.

He caught sight of the quick glare his mother sent Gramps, and the way Gramps suddenly looked sheepish. _They've been following the case,_ Inuyasha suddenly realized. _And they haven't been telling me about it on purpose._ He wasn't sure how to feel about that. Before he could decide what to say, or if he should say anything at all, Souta came in breaking the moment.

"Is breakfast ready yet?" Souta asked.

"Just about," Mrs. Higurashi replied. "Have a seat dear."

Souta sat down and Mrs. Higurashi began bringing the food to the table. "What time are you going to Hojo's house?" Mrs. Higurashi asked as they began to fill their plates.

"Probably right after breakfast," Inuyasha said. "I want to get an early start on my work."

"Are you sure that won't be too early?" she asked.

Inuyasha shook his head. "Nah. His parents open their store on Saturdays too, so he's probably already up by now."

"Oh, that's right, I forgot," Mrs. Higurashi said.

When he'd finished eating, Inuyasha got his makeup work and school books together in his backpack. "I'm off," he called out to his family as he left to head to Hojo's house.

Unlike his walk earlier with Kagome, crowds were out now, especially when he neared Hojo's home. Hojo and his family lived above the shop that his parents owned in the shopping district, and early morning shoppers were already out and about.

Inuyasha didn't enter the store through the front door, but went around the shop to the back entrance. He'd been given permission long ago to make use of it when he visited. It led into a small room that served as half storage, half entryway with stairs that led up to the second floor where the family lived. Inuyasha took the stairs two at a time, not bothering to knock on the door at the top.

The door emptied more or less directly into the family room, where Hojo was already seated on the floor, with his own homework spread out on the coffee table. He looked up at Inuyasha's entrance and grinned. "Hey, Inuyasha. You're here earlier than I expected."

"I woke up earlier than expected," Inuyasha said, kicking off his shoes before joining Hojo at the coffee table.

"Shall we get started then?" Hojo asked, sounding far too cheerful for someone who was about to be working on a load of school work.

Inuyasha sighed heavily. "Yeah. Let's get started."

* * *

Sensei observed Kagome carefully as she practiced her swings, searching for any sign of the distress that he'd seen in Inuyasha. He might not be good at therapy, but he was normally good at reading people, and he sensed no kind of disquiet in her.

Given the events Inuyasha had told him about, Sensei wasn't sure what to make of this. He had expected her to be at least somewhat upset by all that had happened. Perhaps not to the extent that Inuyasha was, given that was the time period she had grown up in, but he thought there should have been some emotion.

Finally, Sensei decided to just ask her about it directly. He waited until she finished her last set of practice swings before broaching the topic. "Kagome," he said, "Inuyasha told me about the recent events in your time."

Kagome tilted her head to the side, the dog ears on top of her head twitching a bit. "Do you mean about Sango's father, or Jinenji?"

"He's told me of both, but I was thinking more about Jinenji," Sensei said, and he had to tamp down his own feelings of anger as he spoke. Just thinking about those bastard villagers who had tied Inuyasha up and left him helpless to do anything but watch as they'd worked their evil infuriated him. They had best be glad that they were dead and gone five hundred years now, or he would find a way to get vengeance on them for what they had done. "He was upset over what happened. I was wondering how you were feeling."

Kagome let out a long, slow breath before she answered. "I hate what happened to Jinenji and his mother. I wish I could have done something differently, so that they wouldn't be dead now. But it isn't the first time I've seen someone killed simply because they were a half demon, and I doubt it'll be the last time either. It's just the way things are."

Sensei felt chilled as he looked at her. He didn't know Kagome's age; he'd never bothered to ask. He'd simply assumed that she was around Inuyasha's age, based on her appearance. But when she spoke those words with that sad, resigned expression in her golden eyes, she seemed absolutely ancient.

"How is Inuyasha doing?" Kagome asked suddenly. "He seemed fine this morning, but I know he isn't used to seeing people die. Is he alright?"

Ten minutes ago, he probably wouldn't have given her a straight answer, but that was when he thought of her as just another teenager. Instead, he decided to be completely honest with her. "He's blaming himself for their deaths."

Kagome frowned. "It isn't his fault."

"So I told him, but I'm not sure he believes me," Sensei said. "It was hard on him, being there and not even getting a chance to try and save them."

Kagome fidgeted with the hilt of her sword a moment before saying, "I'm not sure how to help him. I don't think he likes it all that much when I try."

"That doesn't surprise me," Sensei said. "Inuyasha has always had an independent spirit. He isn't used to relying on others." Not to mention that Inuyasha clearly admired Kagome, and he wouldn't want to show any sort of weakness in front of her. Inuyasha was far too young at this point to realize that that was one of the better parts of true loving relationships, having someone you could show all your weaknesses to without fear of scorn or judgment. "I wish I could tell you how best to help him, but I truly don't know. I haven't had to deal with this sort of situation before."

Kagome looked genuinely surprised at his words. "You haven't? But you're a swordsman."

"Among other things, yes," Sensei agreed. "But that means something different today than it does for you. Most of us have never been in a fight to the death, in these times. Most of us don't ever expect such a thing to actually happen anymore. Swordsmanship, martial arts…Many consider these to be more sports now than anything else."

Kagome's jaw dropped for a moment. "They're considered _sport?_ "

Sensei nodded. "Frequently, yes."

Kagome rocked back on her heels, still clearly stunned. She shook her head and said, "This time is even stranger than I had thought." Then, after a pause, she slowly added, "But that doesn't seem like such a terrible thing. It might be nice, if people didn't need swords anymore."

"I don't want to mislead you," Sensei said. "Murder still happens now too."

"But it isn't the norm," Kagome said. "That makes a difference."

"I guess it does," Sensei agreed. The silence stretched out, and Sensei decided there had been enough chitchat for now. "Well, your break is over. Back to work," he said briskly.

* * *

Inuyasha felt completely brain dead as he made his way home from Hojo's house. People always thought Hojo was so nice, but he could be as relentless a taskmaster as Ms. Sato when he wanted to be, and he'd been in full force today.

 _I guess it's for the best. I did get a lot of work done today, way more than I'd have been able to do on my own._

Even so, Inuyasha was ready to do something, anything, that wouldn't require him to think anymore. "I'm home!" he called out when he entered his house.

"Welcome back, Inuyasha," his mother greeted. "You have a guest."

A guest? Had Kagome stuck around after her training session with Sensei? His spirit lifted at the thought, but the figure that stood from the couch to greet him most definitely wasn't Kagome, though it was a girl. For one thing, this girl was way too tall. She was easily the same height as Miroku, putting her almost eye to eye with Inuyasha. She had bright green eyes, and her black hair was done up in two buns, one on either side of her head. She was vaguely familiar, but Inuyasha honestly couldn't place from where. Aside from Kagome and Sango, Inuyasha didn't know girls.

The girl smiled brightly at him. "Good afternoon! I'm Mine Yamado. We go to school together, though we're in different classes."

"Nice to meet you," Inuyasha said. He had to stop himself from asking why exactly she was there, because that would be rude and his mother would get upset with him. He hadn't known that any girls outside of his class even knew he existed, and those girls in his class were pretty much all scared of him ever since that incident with Ms. Sato.

"If it isn't too much trouble, could I speak with you privately?" she asked, clasping her hands in front of her.

"Um, sure," Inuyasha said. He hesitated for just a second, and then decided to lead her outside. Nowhere downstairs was really private, and he wasn't comfortable at all with the idea of taking a girl he didn't know up to his room. She followed him outside, and he led her over to the Sacred Tree. It had a bench in front of it, giving Mine a place to sit if she wanted. "So, um, what did you want to talk about?"

"Well," she said, "this is probably going to sound weird, but here it goes. Did you really exorcise a ghost?"

Inuyasha had had no idea what to expect from Mine, but that question came from so far out of the left field that he had to stop himself from gaping like an idiot. "Where did you hear that?" he finally managed to ask.

"My little brother is in the same class as Souta," Mine said. "Souta told all of them about how you got rid of that one ghost girl, and Denji told me about it. So, is it true? Can you see ghosts and exorcise them?"

Souta. Of course. Inuyasha almost groaned, and glared back toward the house. What had he been thinking, spreading that story around? "I can see ghosts," he admitted. "And I did exorcise that one, yeah, but I wouldn't consider myself an expert on it or anything. Why do you ask?"

Mine clapped her hands together, looking greatly relieved. "Oh, wonderful! I was hoping it was true!"

"Why?" Inuyasha asked again, filled with wariness.

"Well, you see," she said, "I need you to get rid of a ghost!"

Inuyasha stared at her, with her bright eyes and eager smile. "No."

Mine's smile dropped. "What? But you have to help!"

"No, I really don't," Inuyasha replied.

"But I don't know who else to ask!" Mine said desperately.

"I'm sorry about that," Inuyasha said. "But I'm not a ghost hunter. That time before was a special circumstance and I don't care to repeat it. I wish you luck." He started to walk away, but she grabbed hold of one of his hands with both of hers, luckily not touching his wrist.

"Please!" she said. "I'm begging you to help! I'm really worried that someone might get hurt of something isn't done!"

Her green eyes seemed even brighter than before, and Inuyasha felt a moment of panic. _Is she about to cry?_ He couldn't handle crying girls. He had no idea what to do with them. Frazzled and desperate to prevent any tears from spilling over, he said, "Okay! Okay! I'll see what I can do."

"Oh, thank you, Inuyasha!" she said, and her brilliant smile was back. Somehow, Inuyasha couldn't shake the feeling that he'd just been played.

* * *

AN: If anyone is curious as to why I keep bringing up the Noh mask incident, read on. If you don't care, feel free to ignore this note.

When I started rewatching some of the Inuyasha episodes for inspiration and to refresh my memory for this story, I noticed that there are a number of incidents that happen that are actually really horrifying if you stop to think about it, but the series just kind of sweeps them under the rug. The Noh mask is one of the things it sweeps under the rug.

The Noh mask runs around absorbing people, trying to get itself a new body, and when the mask is finally defeated, those people don't come back. _No one_ is saved. And given the amount of time it had to run around, "dozens" is probably low balling the number of people that ended up dead.

So as far as anyone in the modern era is concerned, at least several dozen people have vanished, including regular citizens, firemen, and police officers, and no one knows why or how. They would know it had something to do with that firetruck that went on a rampage, but that's about it. An incident like that is going to be referenced in the news for months. It's going to be investigated for even longer (though an investigation like that is just an exercise in frustration, but they're going to try). It's a Big Deal.

And the show just brushes it under a rug, like there's no consequences in the modern era for this at all...


	6. Chapter 6

Who You Gonna Call?

"So, what is this ghost thing you want me to look into?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well," Mine said, "I think a street is haunted."

Inuyasha frowned. "A street? I've never heard of anything like that happening. Don't ghosts haunt houses, or people?"

"How should I know?" Mine asked. "I'm not a ghost, I don't know how they think. All I know is ever since those people went missing, weird stuff has been happening on that street."

Despite the warmth of the afternoon, Inuyasha felt cold. She had to be talking about the Noh mask incident. There was nothing else that could possibly fit this situation. _That mask killed dozens of people. If even a few of them couldn't accept their deaths and move on, then…_ Well, Inuyasha didn't know much about ghosts. But it couldn't mean anything good, of that he was sure.

"What kind of weird things?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well, there have been more wrecks on that street lately than ever before," Mine said. "So far none of them have been too serious, but yesterday a car lost control and went up on the sidewalk. It almost hit pedestrians. And well, I walk that way to and from school every day, so it makes me nervous."

Inuyasha sighed. "Have you ever considered changing your route?"

Mine blinked, and tapped her chin with one finger. "Well, no, not really. But even if I did change my route, that wouldn't fix the problem for other people, would it?"

"I guess not," Inuyasha agreed. He closed his eyes for a moment, shoving back a surge of guilt. It wasn't his fault those people had been killed by the Noh mask. He'd gone after it as soon as he'd known the danger existed, and he couldn't help that he wasn't as fast as a fire truck. This _was not_ his fault. But if people were still in danger because of the actions of the Noh mask, and there was something he could do to help, then yes, it was his responsibility to at least try.

"Okay, let me go tell my mom I'm going, and then we'll check out that street," Inuyasha said.

"Really, right now?" Mine asked.

"I probably can't do anything about it right now, but I might be able to see how bad the situation is at least," Inuyasha said. He went back to his house, and sticking he head inside, he called out, "Mom, I'm going somewhere with Mine for a bit!"

"But it's almost dinner time!" Mrs. Higurashi called back.

"I won't be long!" Inuyasha promised, and then shut the door before she could tell him no or ask more questions. "Come on, let's go," Inuyasha said to Mine. It wasn't until they reached the bottom of the steps that lead up to Higurashi Shrine that Inuyasha realized that Mine might not want to go check the street out with him. "Um, you don't have to come if you don't want to," Inuyasha said.

"I don't mind," Mine said. "Besides, I have to walk this way to get home anyway, so there isn't really a point in not going with you."

They walked on, Inuyasha setting a brisk pace and Mine easily keeping up. "So," she said, "how did you find out you could see ghosts? If you don't mind me asking."

"It isn't really a special story," Inuyasha said. "I just saw a kid one day, and then found out no one else could see her. Turned out she was dead."

Mine looked at him for a moment and then sighed and shook her head. "You're not a very good storyteller, are you?"

"It wasn't really a big deal," Inuyasha protested.

Mine scoffed. "Not a big deal? You discovered you could see ghosts, and you say that isn't a big deal?"

Considering the discovery had come after he'd found out he could travel five hundred years into the past, and that things like demons really existed…no, it wasn't really a big deal. "I've seen weirder," he said.

"Seriously?" Mine asked, looking intrigued. "What could be weirder than seeing ghosts?"

 _Oh, crap, I didn't mean to say that!_

"Um, it's nothing," Inuyasha said hastily. Searching for a quick topic change, he said, "So, you said other weird things have been happening on that street, besides the car wrecks. What else has been happening?"

"Well," Mine said, "the traffic lights keep breaking, or going straight from green to red. That's part of why there have been more wrecks, I think. Also, it's like people get really clumsy there too. I've heard about people falling in the road, and saying later that it felt like someone pushed them."

Inuyasha frowned. "It's a miracle that no one's been seriously injured yet if stuff like that has been happening."

Mine nodded. "I know. That's why I want to get this fixed, because if something isn't done soon, someone will get hurt, or even killed." She frowned, looking off into the distance. "But it makes me worry for another reason too. If there really is a ghost making all this stuff happen, and the ghost appeared after all those people disappeared, well, wouldn't that mean those people might be dead now?"

"I guess it could," was all that Inuyasha managed to say.

"I wonder what could have happened to them," Mine went on. "I mean, dozens of people just disappearing like that? It's scary. And since no one knows how it happened, what's to stop it from happening again?"

Inuyasha almost reassured her that it wouldn't, but stopped himself in time. He couldn't tell her that he knew what had happened to all those people that night, or that it wouldn't happen again because Kagome had killed the monster doing it. "Nothing, I guess," Inuyasha said instead.

"I know, right?" Mine said with a shiver. Then she smiled at him again. "But I guess I shouldn't worry about something that might happen, especially since there's nothing I can do to influence it."

"That's practical of you," Inuyasha said, mostly because he felt like he was supposed to say something, but had no idea what that might be.

Then they arrived at the street. Inuyasha recognized it from that night, but he hadn't been back down it since. In truth, he hadn't wanted to go near it after what had happened before. There weren't very many people around, and even fewer cars. Other people besides Mine must have noticed the increased accidents, and they were likely attempting to avoid this particular street.

 _I don't see anything out of the ordinary, but maybe…_ Taking a deep breath, Inuyasha closed his eyes and focused on his awareness. Kaede had said that he could use it to sense demons or spiritually aware humans, and ghosts weren't really either, but maybe it could still work. Taking a mental step back, he let his awareness flow out.

He didn't sense any people, not the way he did when he sensed humans or demons. But there was _something,_ a sort of dark heaviness hanging in the air, and if felt angry.

A hand on his arm made his eyes flicker open. "Inuyasha?" Mine asked, and Inuyasha was somewhat startled by how closely she was leaning toward him. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine," Inuyasha said, moving her hand off of his arm and taking a step back from her. "I was just seeing if I could sense any ghosts."

"Oh, I see," Mine said. "Well, did you?"

"There's definitely something here," Inuyasha confirmed, once more scanning the area for potential threats. "And it's angry."

"I guess if people were killed here, that would be enough to make angry ghosts, right?" Mine asked.

"Probably," Inuyasha said. _But what am I supposed to do about it?_ He'd dealt with one ghost before, and that had completely wiped him out. He wasn't sure how many angry ghosts might have been left here, and he got the feeling that the same way he'd exorcised Mayu probably wouldn't work here. "I don't think there's anything I can do about it tonight," he said. "I'm going to have to do some research first."

"Okay," Mine said. "When do you want me to meet you here again?"

"Huh?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well obviously I'm going to help," Mine said.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Inuyasha said. "I mean, I don't even really know what I'm doing. It could be dangerous for you."

"Won't it be dangerous for you too?" she asked.

"I can handle it," Inuyasha said.

Mine glared at him. "And what, I can't?"

Seeing as Inuyasha had sensed zero spiritual awareness form her, yeah, he was going to say she couldn't. "I have some skills that can help protect me from ghosts, at least to an extent," Inuyasha said. "You don't. You shouldn't put yourself in any unnecessary danger."

Mine looked like she was about to argue, and then whirled around. "Fine, whatever."

Inuyasha sighed. _How do I end up making every girl I meet mad at me?_ He followed behind her, and suddenly she whirled around and glared at him again.

"Why are you following me?" she snapped.

"To make sure you get off the street without getting hurt by the ghost," Inuyasha said warily.

She continued glaring at him for a moment, and then suddenly heaved a huge sigh. "How am I supposed to stay mad at you when you go and do nice things like that?"

Inuyasha really didn't know how to answer that, and wasn't totally sure if she actually meant for him to respond. So, he said nothing, and walked her to the end of the street where she smiled at him. "Thanks again for doing this, Inuyasha. I'll see you later."

"See you later," Inuyasha replied before heading home. _Geez, that girl is a handful.  
_

* * *

When he made it home, he found his family sitting at the dinner table. "Inuyasha, where did you run off to?" Gramps asked.

Inuyasha took his seat at the table. "Sorry for rushing off like that," he said. He explained the situation as briefly as he knew how, and when he was done he turned to Gramps. "So, any advice for how to handle this one?"

Gramps seemed to be deep in thought. "Hm, it's certainly more dangerous than the first ghost you dealt with. From what you've described, I'd be willing to guess there isn't just one ghost, but several to have worked that much havoc."

"That's what I thought too," Inuyasha said. "So how do I deal with them? I mean, I can't trap their spirits the way I trapped Mayu's. I don't know who they are, and even if I did, how would I find the cars they died in?"

"No, you're right," Gramps said. "You won't be able to trap them, which is part of what makes this more dangerous. So long as her spirit was contained, Mayu could not harm you. But these ghosts will not be contained, and that means they can inflict harm on you." Gramps shook his head. "I would prefer it if you had another priest helping you in this situation."

The only other people that Inuyasha knew that actually had some kind of spiritual power were Miroku and Kaede. For once, Inuyasha genuinely wished for the older teen's presence. _A pity he can't come through the well._

Inuyasha frowned at that thought. He didn't actually know for sure that Miroku couldn't use the well, as the monk had never tried. It seemed like a safe assumption though, since Shippo and Souta hadn't been able to go through. So far, only he and Kagome had been able to make use of it.

 _But I didn't really want Shippo to make it through that time, and I definitely didn't want Souta going through…Myoga said the well might have some sort of intelligence. Is there a chance that it doesn't let people through unless I want it to?_

It seemed like an awfully slim chance. How should the well know who Inuyasha did or did not want passing through it, and why should his wishes matter to it? But if he was right, then he would have the help he needed. Surely in all his years of travel, Miroku had handled a ghost or two. At the very least, it was worth a shot.

"I think I've got an idea," Inuyasha said. "But I need to talk to Miroku about it in the past."

"That can wait until morning," Mrs. Higurashi said firmly. "It isn't as though you can do anything about it tonight."

Inuyasha nodded in acceptance of her words.

"Well, I wouldn't say nothing can be done," Gramps said. "After dinner, I shall teach you to make the ofuda for dispelling ghosts. Whatever you may do, those should come in handy."

Inuyasha smiled at him. "Thanks, Gramps, I appreciate it."

After dinner, Gramps put him to work, and he seemed pleased to be able to teach Inuyasha a part of his trade. Inuyasha was surprised to discover how difficult it actually was to mark the papers correctly, and he messed up more than a few times while getting started.

"Couldn't you just make them for me like last time?" Inuyasha grumbled.

"I could, but they wouldn't be as effective," Gramps said. "Those other charms gained their power from the prayers offered when they were placed. Part of the power for these is gained when they are made, and they are put to their best use when the one who made them uses them. If you're going to try and exorcise several ghosts, you need your tools to be the best they can be."

"I guess that makes sense," Inuyasha said. It took a while, but he did finally manage to make one that met to Gramps's satisfaction.

"Good job," he said. "Now you just need to make two dozen more!"

Inuyasha's jaw dropped. "Two dozen? Isn't that a bit overkill?"

"Not when you don't know how many ghosts you're deal with," Gramps said sternly. "Get busy, Inuyasha!"

Several hours and an unknown number of ruined papers later, Inuyasha had finally completed the task. "Finally!" he said. "I'm going to bed!" It was late, and Inuyasha knew that morning would come all too early.

* * *

As soon as breakfast ended, Inuyasha went through the well. Though he still considered it to be relatively early, the village was already bustling with activity. He found Shippo and Miroku near Kaede's hut, though he didn't get a chance to see what they were up to before Shippo was launching himself at Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, you're here!" he crowed. Then his excitement dimmed just a tad and he asked, "Are you only here for a little while?"

"Yeah, I'm afraid so," Inuyasha said, and Shippo looked so disappointed that Inuyasha couldn't resist trying to cheer him up. "But next time I come back, I promise I'll bring you a treat."

Shippo brightened considerably at that. By this time Miroku had made his way over to them. "Good morning, Inuyasha," Miroku said amiably. "What brings you back here so soon?"

"Where are Kagome and Sango?" Inuyasha asked instead of answering.

"Sango left early this morning to visit her relatives since you are staying in your time for a while," Miroku said. "Kagome also left this morning to train with your Sensei."

Inuyasha frowned, wondering why she hadn't stopped by the house like she normally did, and then he remembered her embarrassment from the day before for having woken him unnecessarily early. He figured she hadn't wanted a repeat of that incident.

"Okay," he said. "I actually wanted to talk to you, so I guess that isn't a big deal."

Miroku's eyebrows rose slightly at this statement, and Inuyasha resisted the urge to glare at him. He didn't have to act quite so surprised that Inuyasha wanted to talk to him. "I'm all ears," Miroku said.

They settled down near Kaede's hut, Shippo claiming Inuyasha's lap as his seat, and Inuyasha explained the situation to them. "Hm," Miroku said. "That is troublesome. If the ghosts are very angry about their deaths, then you are correct in assuming it is only a matter of time before they kill someone."

"So you have dealt with ghosts before?" Inuyasha asked.

Miroku nodded. "In these times it is impossible to travel as often as I do and not run into ghosts. Honestly, I'm surprised we haven't come across any since we joined up together. Why, once I ran across a battlefield full of the slain that no one had bothered to do the proper rites for. Now _that_ was unpleasant."

It was also just the sort of experience that Inuyasha could use on his side.

"But Inuyasha," Miroku said, "I'm not sure you should take this on. I believe you have the power to deal with it, but you haven't been trained for it. Exorcisms can get nasty if they aren't done correctly, especially for any innocent bystanders."

Inuyasha didn't like it that Miroku was right, but he knew the monk was. "Yeah, I know," Inuyasha said. "That's why I want you to try and come through the well."

"But the well only works for you and Kagome," Shippo interjected.

"So far, sure," Inuyasha replied. "The only other people who have tried it are you and my little brother, Souta. And we don't exactly know why the well does or doesn't work for people."

"So you think there is a chance that it might work for me," Miroku finished.

Inuyasha shrugged. "I figured it was at least worth trying."

Miroku smoothly stood to his feet. "I agree. Let's get to it."

They walked to the well, Shippo riding on Inuyasha's shoulder. "Shippo, if this works, you will you let Kaede know where I've gone?" Miroku asked.

"Sure thing," Shippo said.

The well came into sight, and just in case the well did choose who to let through based on Inuyasha's wants, he tried to project his thoughts toward it. _Please let Miroku through! I really need his help in the future! If I have to try to exorcise those ghosts by myself and mess up, then people might get hurt, or killed. Please let him through!_

Shippo hopped off Inuyasha's shoulder as he and Miroku settled on the rim of the well. "I do hope this works," Miroku said. "It would be just my luck if it didn't for me to land wrong and twist my ankle."

"Just try not to hit me with your staff if it does work," Inuyasha said.

Miroku chuckled. "I'll do my best."

Then they both hopped in, and the familiar light flared to greet Inuyasha. When it faded, he found himself standing at the bottom of the well, and Miroku was standing beside him. "It worked!" Inuyasha exclaimed.

"So it would seem," Miroku said.

"I'm glad," Inuyasha said his shoulders sagging with relief at the thought that he wouldn't have to try and do this alone. Then, embarrassed by his obvious relief, Inuyasha quickly turned and grabbed the rope ladder to climb up. Miroku made no comment as he followed him.

Souta was out in the yard when Inuyasha exited the well house and rushed over to them. "You must be Miroku!" Souta said, grinning up at the monk.

"And you must be Souta," Miroku replied, smiling brightly. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," Souta said. He turned to Inuyasha. "Is he going to get to meet Mom and Gramps?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "I still have to get stuff from the house, so it isn't like it's avoidable." Not that he would have really tried to avoid such a meeting, as he was sure Gramps and his mother would both be eager to meet Miroku. As they walked toward the house, Inuyasha didn't miss the way that Miroku gazed about, taking everything in. _This is probably even weirder for him than going to the past was for me. At least I've studied some history, so I kind of know what I'm going to be dealing with. For Miroku, all of this is strange._

They entered the house, and Souta rushed ahead of them, calling out, "Mom, Gramps, Inuyasha's back and he brought his friend!"

Gramps and Mrs. Higurashi met them in the living room, both clearly curious about their guest. Miroku bowed politely. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for welcoming me into your home."

"The pleasure is ours," Mrs. Higurashi said with a smile.

"So you're going to be helping Inuyasha?" Gramps asked. "Do you have experience exorcising ghosts?"

"I do," Miroku replied. "I deal more frequently with demons, but I have run across my share of ghosts in my travels as well. From what Inuyasha has told me, this situation sounds quite serious."

Gramps seemed pleased with that response, and for that matter, so did Mrs. Higurashi. Inuyasha picked up the ofuda he'd worked on the night before from the coffee table. "So," he said, directing his question to Miroku, "is there anything in particular that we need to grab before we head out?"

Miroku shook his head. "No, we should have everything, if you're ready to go."

"I am," Inuyasha said. "The sooner we handle this, the better."

They left, and Miroku asked, "What was it you needed to get from your home?"

Inuyasha showed him the ofuda. "These. Gramps had me make them last night. He said they'll help against the ghosts. Was he right?" It wasn't that he doubted Gramps, but the old man had never actually exorcised anything in his life, so he could have been given bad information over the years.

Miroku studied them for a moment and then nodded. "Yes, they will, if the ghosts decide to manifest themselves. Do you know any of the chants for handling ghosts?"

"One," Inuyasha said. "But it's kind of long."

"Recite it for me," Miroku said.

Inuyasha did, and he was proud that he actually remembered the whole thing. Miroku nodded when he was finished. "That is a good one, but it is too long to help if a ghost decides to attack you." He reached into his robes and pulled out a piece of paper. "Here, this should offer you some protection from any attacks by the ghosts."

Inuyasha accepted it. "You just keep these things on you?"

"You never know when they might come in handy," Miroku said lightly. "I believe it's best to always be prepared for any situation."

"So, in other words, you ran into an angry ghost once without anything prepared and got your butt kicked," Inuyasha said.

Miroku laughed. "I wouldn't phrase it quite like that, but essentially, yes." He glanced around. "The future is a truly fascinating place."

"I guess so," Inuyasha said. "I mean, I'm used to it, so I don't really think about it all that much."

"I like how bold the clothing has gotten," Miroku said, eyeing a group of teenage girls. Inuyasha didn't see anything particularly bold about their skirts and tops, but he supposed that was more skin than women typically showed in the past.

He punched Miroku's shoulder. "Don't stare, pervert!"

Miroku rubbed his shoulder as he affected an injured look. "I wasn't staring, merely appreciating."

"Coming from you, it's perverted," Inuyasha said flatly. "We're here."

Miroku glanced around. "Are you certain? I don't sense any ghosts here."

"Huh? Oh, no, not there," Inuyasha said. "We're at Sensei's. I figured it might be a good idea to pick up Kagome on our way. I mean, I know she can't do anything about ghosts, but if there are any bystanders around, she can at least try and keep them out of harm's way."

"I see, well thought out," Miroku said.

They entered the dojo, and Kagome froze when she caught sight of them. "Miroku?" she gasped. "What are you doing here?"

Miroku smiled brightly. "Apparently I can go through the well also."

"Really sorry to interrupt," Inuyasha said to Sensei, who actually didn't look as upset at the interruption as Inuyasha had expected him to. "But we've got a bit of a situation and we need Kagome's help."

Kagome sheathed her sword. "Here or in the past?"

"Here," Inuyasha said.

"Let me change and I'll be ready," she said, ducking into the locker room.

"What kind of situation are you talking about?" Sensei asked, striding over to them.

"Ghosts," Inuyasha said. "Some of the people who were killed by the Noh mask didn't move on, and they've been causing trouble." Realizing he hadn't done introductions yet, Inuyasha said, "By the way, this is Miroku. Miroku, this is Sensei."

Miroku bowed his head politely. "An honor to meet you."

"Likewise," Sensei said shortly. "I'm coming with you, Inuyasha."

"Yes, Sensei," Inuyasha said. There probably wasn't anything Sensei could do, but Inuyasha didn't dare argue with the man.

Kagome returned, changed into her one of her modern outfits. It was jeans this time, which was probably a good thing. If she had to jump around any to help others, her dress wouldn't have been a good outfit for that. "So that's why you got Miroku," Kagome said. "Handling one ghost was draining enough for you. Several of them might be too much on your own."

"Yeah, basically," Inuyasha said.

They headed out, though Sensei took a moment to inform Usagi that he was leaving. "Kagome, I'm curious," Miroku said. "Why did you need to change into modern clothes?"

"People in the future don't know that demons exist," Kagome said. "I have to pretend to be human, so the modern clothes and the hat to cover my ears."

"Ah, I see," Miroku said. "Does this mean my clothes draw attention?"

"Probably they do," Inuyasha said. "I mean, sometimes you might see someone dressed as a monk or a priest, but that's usually at shrines or something. It's rare enough in public that you're probably getting attention."

Of course, right now their whole group was probably getting attention from anyone around. What with Sensei still dressed in his martial arts practice clothes, Kagome with her long silver hair, and Miroku with his monk clothes and staff, they were all in all an odd looking bunch.

They finally made it to the street, which was thankfully empty of pedestrians at the moment, though Inuyasha could see some customers in store and café windows.

"There is definitely an evil presence here," Miroku said grimly and Inuyasha nodded in agreement. He could sense it as well, that heavy, angry darkness from the night before.

But before he could ask Miroku what they needed to do to get started, a voice called his name. "Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha whirled around and nearly swore when he saw Mine practically skipping toward him, a big smile on her face. "Mine? What are you doing here?"

"I told you I wanted to help," she said brightly. "I figured you'd come back today, so I've been waiting all morning."

"You waited," Inuyasha said flatly, "on a street haunted by angry ghosts that are trying to _hurt people._ "

Mine blinked. "Hm, you know, I didn't really think of it like that, but I guess so."

Sometimes Inuyasha really wished it was acceptable to hit people for being stupid.

Mine's expression brightened as she noticed the others. "Oh hey, you found help! Hello, I'm Mine Yamada."

Miroku stepped forward with a smile and took Mine's hand in his own. "My name is Miroku. May I just say, Mine-"

Inuyasha grabbed Miroku's shoulder and dragged him back. "Dude, no!" He did not need Miroku to say something perverted. With Inuyasha's luck, it would end up getting overblown and spread around school that he hung out with sex offenders or something.

"Inuyasha? Mine? What are you two doing?"

 _Oh_ hell _no._

Dread slowing his movements, he turned to see the frowning expression of Ms. Sato. _Could this get any worse?_

* * *

AN: The rules of the well and who can and can't go through it and when are super inconsistent within the show. So I'm making up my own for the purposes of this story.


	7. Chapter 7

Ghost Busters

Seeing Ms. Sato there was one of those weird, awkward moments that cause one to wonder why they're seeing a teacher out of school, and who knew teachers could dress casually, only it was made worse by the fact that Inuyasha was seeing her outside of school while getting ready to attempt exorcising ghosts.

Before Inuyasha could come up with an answer that didn't involve ghost hunting, Mine smiled brightly and said, "Oh, hey Ms. Sato! We're going to get rid of the ghosts haunting this street! Well, Inuyasha's going to get rid of them, and I guess his friends are going to help. I'm going to help too! Or I'm going to try and help. I'm not sure what exactly I can do, but hey, it's the thought that counts, right?"

… _So what's the point of having special powers if I can't make the earth open up and swallow me when I want it to? Or better yet, swallow annoying people who don't know when to keep their mouths shut!_

"You're hunting ghosts," Ms. Sato said. She glared then, and to Inuyasha's surprise, she wasn't glaring at him, but Sensei. "I can't believe any supposedly responsible adult would encourage such foolishness."

Sensei glared back. "I don't think it's any of your business."

 _Am I missing something here?_

Ms. Sato took an angry step toward them, and as she did so, Inuyasha suddenly saw a pair of arms fade into view behind her. "Look out!" he shouted as the arms shoved her, and suddenly Ms. Sato was falling into the path of an oncoming car.

Sensei reacted quicker than any of them, grabbing Ms. Sato's hand and yanking her back onto the sidewalk. Inuyasha ducked around them, pulling out one of the ofuda he'd made and slapping it on one of the arms before they could disappear again. There was a crackle of energy and flash of light accompanied by a howl that tossed Inuyasha back. He would have fallen to the sidewalk if Kagome hadn't caught him.

"I think that's one down," he said. "Thanks for catching me, Kagome."

He turned to check on Ms. Sato who looked rather shaken but unhurt, and she was clinging to Sensei's wrist with a white knuckled grip. Her glasses were missing, and she asked, "Can someone hand me my glasses?"

Looking at the road, Inuyasha spotted the mangled mess that was left of them. "Um, looks like the car ran over them." It was her second pair of broken glasses in only a matter of weeks.

"How bad is your eyesight without them?" Mine asked, all concern.

Ms. Sato squinted in Mine's direction. "Very," she answered shortly, which probably explained why she was holding onto Sensei's wrist still.

"Inuyasha," Miroku said. Inuyasha looked over at him, but the monk's attention was focused on the sky. "I think you made the rest of the ghosts mad."

Inuyasha followed his gaze up and sucked in a breath at the sight. It was like a dark cloud hung low over the street, radiating malevolence. Within that cloud Inuyasha could make out flashes of the ghosts. By his count, there were at least ten of them.

 _And Ms. Sato and Mine are completely helpless against them._

"What is it?" Mine asked. "What do you see?"

Inuyasha ignored her question to say, "Sensei, you need to get Ms. Sato and Mine out of here now."

"Inuyasha," Sensei stared, but he didn't let Sensei finish.

"Now, Sensei!" Inuyasha ordered with an authority he would never had dared to use on the older man before. But Sensei had no spiritual abilities either, so as strange as it was for Inuyasha to think it, it meant Sensei was just as vulnerable as Ms. Sato and Mine in this situation. Getting the two women to safety was the only things Sensei could do in this situation.

"Fine," Sensei said.

"But, hey!" Mine cried, and Inuyasha didn't need to look to know that Sensei was probably dragging her off. That would look really suspicious to any passerby's who happened to see them, so Inuyasha absently hoped that no one else would, but he didn't dare take his eyes off the mass of ghosts to check.

"What can I do?" Kagome asked.

"Can you see the ghosts?" Inuyasha asked.

"No," she admitted.

"Then just do your best to keep an eye on anyone who comes by and try and keep them out of the way," Inuyasha said. "Miroku, what do we need to do?"

"I'm going to try and exorcise them," Miroku said. "I'll be vulnerable while I'm doing it, so I need you to guard me, Inuyasha. If any of them attack, and I expect they will, I need you to use your ofuda to stop them."

"Got it," Inuyasha said, moving into position beside the monk.

Miroku closed his eyes and held his staff out in front of him. He began to chant, a different one than Inuyasha had learned from Gramps. The reaction among the ghosts was instant. The mass above them began to writhe, and a figure shot down straight at Miroku. Inuyasha jumped in the way and snapped out one of his ofuda. He was prepared for the rush of energy this time, and so managed to hold his ground. As soon as the light faded, two more ghosts rushed down, coming from different directions this time.

Frantic to keep Miroku safe from the attack, Inuyasha threw an ofuda at one, and jumped in the way of the other armed with another paper. He felt the rush of energy from behind him, and realized that somehow against all odds, the paper had still managed to hit the other ghosts and exorcise it.

Inuyasha was dimly aware that a car was coming up the street and that they must make for a ridiculous sight, but he was too focused on waiting for the ghosts' next attack to care. Two more ghosts detached themselves from the mass, but instead of flying toward Inuyasha and Miroku, they went for the car. Inuyasha only realized what they intended when they shoved one side of the car and the vehicle suddenly veered toward them.

Before Inuyasha could shout for Kagome, she was between them and the car, and the car slammed into her. Inuyasha's heart jumped into his throat, but the portion that hit her crumpled and it only shoved her back a few feet. She bounded over the driver's door, and bracing herself with one foot, she used her left arm to actually rip the door off the vehicle while her right arm hung limply.

 _She's hurt!_

He didn't have time to ask what was wrong with her arm though before she dragged the stunned driver out of his car and dashed off to get him out of the way. Behind him, Inuyasha could hear Miroku's voice take on a new intensity as he chanted, and Inuyasha felt a fleeting moment of respect that Miroku could have kept chanting without missing a beat during that moment.

The mass of ghosts roiled in response to Miroku, and suddenly they scattered in different direction, setting up a high pitched wailing so intense Inuyasha thought his eardrums would burst. Storefront windows shattered, and Inuyasha could faintly make out the sound of the people inside them screaming. The glass coverings on the streetlamps blew out one by one, sprinkling Inuyasha and Miroku with broken shards of glass.

Inuyasha wanted to dash after all the ghosts that were now within his reach, but he held his ground knowing that Miroku would be completely vulnerable without him standing guard. Now that the ghosts were no longer packed in together in one large mass, he could see there were even more than he had first thought.

Miroku's chant ended on a sharp note, and Inuyasha felt the wave of power roll out from him. When the power met with the ghosts, they fizzled out of existence, until the sky was bright and clear again.

"Is it over?" Kagome asked, making Inuyasha start. He hadn't noticed her return.

"It is," Miroku said. He glanced around and winced at the sight of the damage. "But I think we should be on our way out of here."

Probably a good idea; no one else had been able to see the ghosts, so there was a good chance Inuyasha and his friends would somehow end up being blamed for it. They rushed off, and Kagome led them straight to Sensei and the others who were waiting a few blocks away. Sensei and Ms. Sato both looked equally grim, and Mine was biting her lip with worry. Sensei and Mine both looked relieved when they spotted them coming.

"You're back!" Mine said.

"Are you alright?" Ms. Sato asked. By the way she squinted at them, she couldn't see well enough to tell, but her question made Inuyasha remember Kagome's arm.

He turned to her. "Your arm!"

"I'll be fine," she said. "I think my shoulder is dislocated, but we should get out of here before we deal with it."

"We'll go to the dojo," Sensei said. "I know how to set your shoulder."

They went as quickly as they could without looking too suspicious. Mine lead Ms. Sato, but her green eyes kept darting over to Kagome. Inuyasha couldn't quite figure out why until it suddenly hit him that during the exorcism Kagome had lost her hat, leaving her dog ears on display.

 _Crap, how am I supposed to explain that?_

When they made it to the dojo, Sensei had Kagome sit down, and he held her arm with one hand and placed his other hand on her shoulder. "On the count of five," he said. "One, two."

Kagome yelped as her arm snapped back into place. "You said on the count of five!" she accused.

"I lied," Sensei said. "Is anything else hurt?"

Kagome shook her head. "No, it was just my shoulder."

"How did your shoulder get dislocated by ghosts?" Mine asked.

"She stopped a car from hitting us," Inuyasha said without thinking.

Ms. Sato's head snapped in his direction. "She stopped a car? And _only_ dislocated her shoulder?"

 _Ground, open, swallow,_ Inuyasha thought, burying his face in his hands. Why had he gone and said something so stupid?

"You're not human, are you?" Mine asked staring at Kagome curiously. "I mean, those are dog ears on your head, right?"

Kagome's ears flatted on her head, and she sent an uncertain look in Inuyasha's direction, clearly remembering Inuyasha's admonition that no one in the future should find out that she wasn't completely human.

"Dog ears?" Ms. Sato demanded, her voice an octave higher than normal.

"Everyone sit down, and shut up!" Sensei's voice cracked like a whip, and everyone obeyed without protest. "Good," Sensei said and then turned to Inuyasha. "Clearly keeping everything a secret from them isn't possible. You may as well explain it."

 _And here I go again._

He went through the story again, keeping it as short as he could without being too confusing. But he made sure to take the time to explain about the Noh mask, so that they could understand where the ghosts had come from.

When he'd finished, Ms. Sato said, "You do understand this is a very difficult story to believe."

Sensei snorted. "You were almost killed by ghosts an hour ago."

"And Kagome definitely isn't human," Mine said. "Not with those ears."

"I'm half human, actually," Kagome said. "I'm also half dog demon."

Ms. Sato huffed, squinting in Kagome's general direction. "I can't see them."

 _She can't see them? Kagome's only five feet away from her. Her eyesight must be really bad._

Kagome moved so she was beside Ms. Sato. "If you still need proof, I'll let you feel them."

"Very well," Ms. Sato said, raising one hand. "You may want to help so I don't accidentally poke you in the eye or something."

Kagome obligingly took hold of her hand and placed it on one of her ears. With a look of concentration on her face, Ms. Sato felt Kagome's ears. Her eyes widened and she pulled her hand back quickly. "They are real!" She turned to Inuyasha. "So that's why you've been missing so much school? Because you've been going back in time using that well of yours to hunt down some magic jewel?"

"Basically," Inuyasha said.

Ms. Sato crossed her arms over her chest. "I don't think I approve of this. This seems like an awfully dangerous task for someone so young."

Inuyasha bristled a bit at the young comment, but supposed that to a teacher all of their students must seem very young. "I have to do it," Inuyasha said. "I'm the only one who can track down the jewel shards. The longer it takes to get those, the more people who get hurt or killed."

Ms. Sato looked like she was about to argue with that, but just then the door to the dojo slid open and Usagi stuck her head inside. "Dad, should I set the table with extra plates for lunch?"

"No, that won't be necessary," Sensei said. Usagi nodded and left. Sensei stood then. "We should probably postpone this discussion for now. I suggest everyone go home. Kagome, we can continue your training once your shoulder has finished healing."

Kagome nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"I'll walk you home, Ms. Sato," Mine volunteered.

Ms. Sato sighed, but allowed Mine to pull her to her feet. "Better take me to my eye doctor instead. I'll be useless until I get a new pair of glasses."

"Maybe you should think about getting contacts?" Mine suggested as they left.

"We'd better head out then," Inuyasha said. "Thanks for your help today, Sensei."

Sensei nodded, and the three of them headed out. "Now then," Miroku said. "Since our lives are no longer in immediate danger, I have some questions."

"What?" Inuyasha asked.

"To start with, those things," Miroku said, pointing to the vehicles on the road. "I believe you called them cars? How do they work?"

"A combination of electricity and gas I guess," Inuyasha said. "I don't really know the details of it; I'm not a mechanic."

"What's electricity?" Miroku asked.

Scratching his head, Inuyasha tried to figure out the best way to explain electricity. "Um, lightning. We use it to power stuff."

"How do you trap lightning?" Miroku asked.

"It's not literally trapped lightning," Inuyasha said. "Look, I don't know how it works, but it does."

Miroku seemed disappointed with that response, but he had more questions to turn to. Inuyasha had never realized just how curious Miroku could be, and he was hard pressed to come up with an answer for all of his questions.

The flood was finally stemmed with they made it back to the shrine. "We should get going," Kagome said. "Shippo and Kaede will be waiting to hear how things went and that we're all okay."

Before Miroku could protest too much, Kagome dragged him off to the well house. "See you two later," Inuyasha called after them. He entered his house and found his family waiting for him like usual.

"You're back!" Souta said. "What happened?"

Inuyasha flopped down on the couch. "We handled it. The ghosts are all gone."

Souta grinned at him. "I knew you could do it!"

"It wouldn't have happened without the others," Inuyasha said.

"No one was hurt, I hope," Mrs. Higurashi said.

"Kagome was, but not seriously," Inuyasha said. "She says she'll be better by morning."

"Give us details, boy," Gramps said. "What happened?"

So Inuyasha recounted it, telling them all that had gone on, including Ms. Sato and Mine finding out about his trips to the past.

"So your teacher knows now," Mrs. Higurashi said when he finished. "Maybe that will make things easier for you at school."

"I hope so," Inuyasha said. "But I guess we'll see."

"Well, I think we could all use something to eat," his mother said. "Lunch is just about ready. Why don't you all come to the table?"

Inuyasha didn't care for the idea of moving. Now that he was sitting somewhere comfortable and he didn't have to worry about anything trying to kill him or anyone else, he was realizing just how much that exorcism experience had worn him out. "Actually, Mom, I'm not really hungry right now," Inuyasha said. "But I am tired. I think I'm just going to go lay down."

"Okay, dear," Mrs. Higurashi said. "Whatever you need to do."

So Inuyasha went upstairs and flopped down on his bed. Within moments, he was asleep.

* * *

Though Miroku had protested when Kagome dragged him off to the well, he wasn't truly all that resistant to heading back. The effort it had taken to exorcise those ghosts had really worn him out, even though he hadn't been willing to show it.

 _I'm sure Inuyasha's just as tired as I am, if not more so._

After all, the younger teen had exorcised a number of the ghosts himself with his ofuda. Miroku hadn't expected Inuyasha to be able to do that. The amount of power it took to exorcise as many as he had in that manner was staggering.

 _I think we've all been underestimating just how much power Inuyasha has. With the proper training, I wouldn't be surprised if he managed to become the most powerful priest alive._

It probably shouldn't be all that surprising. After all, Kaede had informed Miroku that Inuyasha was Kikyo's reincarnation, and the stories of Kikyo's power were near legendary. She had left a large role for Inuyasha to fill, and Miroku didn't doubt that he would manage it.

Miroku was distracted from his thoughts when Kagome's left arm went around his waist and she jumped out of the well. "Thank you for the assistance," Miroku said.

"You're welcome," she said.

Shippo was waiting for them, and he bounded over to Kagome. Miroku watched with some amusement. Shippo made his favorites among them well known. Inuyasha came first, but if he wasn't around, Shippo usually clung to Kagome.

"You guys are okay!" Shippo said. "Did you get rid of the ghosts?"

"We did," Kagome said. "Everything is handled there."

"Let's head to the village," Miroku said. "I'm sure Kaede will want to hear the story too."

Kaede was actually in her hut now, and Miroku and Kagome gave their report. "It is good that you were able to go through the well and assist him," Kaede said.

"I agree," Miroku said.

"How come you could go through it and I couldn't?" Shippo asked.

"I'm not certain," Miroku said. "I really have no idea how the well works."

"I don't think anyone knows," Kagome said. "Though Myoga said he thought it might be sentient, and chose who it does or doesn't let through."

"That could make sense," Miroku said. "But how has it gained the ability to connect two times at all?"

"There are some things in life," Kaede said, "that we may never have the answer for."

 _And that well is probably one of them,_ Miroku added mentally. But admitting that didn't stop him from being curious about it.

"Boy, Sango is going to hate that she missed all this," Shippo said. "I wonder if she could go through the well too?"

"If she wants, she can try it when she comes back," Kagome said.

Shippo looked over at Kaede. "Are you going to try it?"

Kaede shook her head. "No, child. At this point in my life, I have no interest in seeing the future. I am more concerned with what is going on now."

Miroku recognized the subtle warning her words offered. The future was a fascinating place, but the most important thing for them all was tracking down the jewel shards to prevent their misuse by others.

 _And to kill Naraku,_ Miroku thought, absently flexing his right hand. He wasn't sure if that was as high a priority for the others as it was for him, but that was still his ultimate goal, even over collecting the shards.

Miroku frowned. _Naraku should be weaker right now. Is this really the best time to be taking a break? If we could find him, we might be able to finish him off._

Ah, well. It was probably a little late for these thoughts now. Besides, if Naraku was busy trying to heal himself, he probably wasn't causing trouble for others.

 _At least, I hope._


	8. Chapter 8

Into the Miasma

It almost felt strange to Inuyasha that he wasn't going to have to worry about an interrogation from Ms. Sato at school since she knew everything now. Strange, but also certainly a relief.

"Do I have a story to tell you," Inuyasha told Hojo as they headed to their classroom.

"Did something interesting happen yesterday?" Hojo asked.

"That's certainly one way of putting it," Inuyasha said. There wasn't time to tell him that morning of course, but when lunch time came and they pushed their desks together, Hojo made it clear he expected to hear at least some of the story. "So, it started Saturday, after I got home from your place. There was this girl, Mine, waiting for me at my house."

Hojo looked even more interested. "A girl was waiting for you?"

"Not like that!" Inuyasha snapped.

The door to their classroom slid open, and Inuyasha glanced over to see who was coming in. His jaw dropped when he saw Mine standing in the doorway. Her green eyes landed on him and her face lit up with a smile. "Hey, Inuyasha!"

Her greeting caught the attention of the other students, and the whispers instantly started. Ever since the incident with Ms. Sato, none of his classmates were willing to approach him, but they all stared as Mine skipped over to his and Hojo's desks. She seemed completely oblivious to the attention she was drawing however.

"Mine, what are you doing here?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well, you see," Mine said, "since you did so much to help me out, I thought I should do something to pay you back for it, so I made you this!" She held out a bento for him. "Here you go!"

Inuyasha could feel his face heating up. No girl had ever done anything like this for him before. "Um, thanks, but I already—" he bit back a curse when he felt Hojo kick him in the shin under their desks.

"What he means to say is he already can't wait to eat it," Hojo said smoothly, taking the lunch from Mine and setting it in front of Inuyasha. "Isn't that right, Inuyasha?"

"Sure," Inuyasha agreed, knowing that anything else would probably get him kicked again.

Mine beamed at him. "I'm glad! I hope it's good, since I don't know what you like to eat. Could you tell me what you like so that I can make sure you'll enjoy the next one?"

"Next one?" Inuyasha asked blankly.

"Of course, silly!" Mine said. "Just one meal is hardly worth what you did."

Inuyasha could kind of agree with that statement, but there was something really embarrassing about the idea of Mine making him lunch every day for who knew how long.

"Inuyasha isn't picky," Hojo jumped in and said. "He doesn't like things that are too spicy or too sweet, but other than that he'll eat just about anything."

"Okay, thanks," Mine said. She smiled brightly at them both. "I hope you enjoy it, Inuyasha. See you tomorrow!"

"See you," Inuyasha said. Once she was gone, he glared at Hojo. "What'd you kick me for?"

Hojo frowned at him sternly. "Inuyasha, when a girl makes you lunch, you do not respond by telling her you already have one."

"But I do!" Inuyasha said. "Mom makes me one every day!"

"Then I guess she's going to have a break for a little while," Hojo said. "Now eat your food and tell me what kind of favor you did for her to earn you a lunch every day."

Inuyasha sighed and tugged at the cloth wrapped around the bento. It was white with a sunflower print, irritatingly bright and cheerful like its owner. He explained how Mine had heard of him exorcising Mayu's ghost, and asked him to exorcise the ghosts haunting her way home.

"Well, that is worthy of some special lunches," Hojo said. "How's the food, by the way?"

"It's not bad," Inuyasha admitted grudgingly. It was actually as good as the lunches his mother made him, which Inuyasha found annoying for some reason he couldn't explain. Hojo of course knew Inuyasha well enough to know that when he said it wasn't bad, that actually meant he thought it was really good, so he chuckled at Inuyasha's reluctant praise.

Their lunch break ended and classes resumed. Thanks to Hojo's help and having spent most of Saturday working on his makeup work, Inuyasha actually had an idea about what was going on, though he was still behind. _Maybe I should start taking my work back to the past with me. It might help me stay caught up better._ Inuyasha quickly dismissed that idea though. With his luck, he'd end up losing his books in the past.

 _On the plus side, at least Ms. Sato would believe that excuse now._

* * *

Sango was glad to be home again, even if it was only for a short while. She had wanted to check up on Kohaku and make sure he was doing alright, but aside from that she wanted to update Uncle Seiko on what had happened with Naraku and her father.

She waited until she had a chance to speak with him privately, while Kohaku was training with the other boys his age, to tell her uncle what had happened. It was painful, telling him what she had almost done in an effort to save her father.

"Sango," Uncle Seiko said when she had finished her report, "I understand your desire to save Hayasaka. I wish he could be saved as well. But you must not do anything like that again. What is dead must remain dead, though we may wish it otherwise. A return to death is the only freedom from Naraku that he can be offered now."

Sango looked away from her uncle, watching Kohaku as he practiced. "My head knows this," she said. "But I can't help but wish for another way."

"So do I," Uncle Seiko said. "But another way simply doesn't exist."

It hurt, hearing him say such things. Sango didn't want him to be right. She wanted her father returned to her, whole and well and living. She wanted things back to the way they had been before Naraku had reared his head. And she wanted to feel confident again that under no circumstances would she betray those that she considered friends.

 _But I might. If Naraku uses Father against me again…I might betray them._

She didn't understand how they could know that and still want her around. But somehow they still trusted her, and Sango was terrified that their trust was misplaced.

Sango was distracted from her thoughts by the approach of one of their messengers. "Seiko, sir, we've received a request that I think you should hear."

"What is it?" Uncle Seiko asked.

"There is a town that has reported that over the last few days they've experienced a rain of blood and demon parts," the messenger said. "They do not know what is causing it, but the blood has poisoned their fields, and caused their elderly and young to grow ill."

Uncle Seiko frowned. "That is disturbing. I've never heard of the like in all my days."

Neither had Sango. She had no idea what could possibly be causing a situation like that, but it sounded dangerous.

"That needs to be investigated, but it sounds like a job for more than just one slayer," Uncle Seiko said. "I'll have to put together a team."

"Let me go with them, Uncle," Sango said quickly.

Uncle Seiko shook his head. "You're still recovering from your injuries."

"I'm fine," Sango said. It wasn't quite true. Her injuries were no longer at a point where they were life threatening on their own, but they would still leave her at a disadvantage in a fight. She knew that, but she still wanted to go. As much as she enjoyed being able to see Kohaku and make sure he was doing well, being in the village gave her too much time to think. Sango didn't want to think, and a mission would allow her to ignore her thoughts. A mission would give her purpose. "I can handle this."

"Alright," Uncle Seiko finally said, making Sango wonder how much of her thoughts he understood. "But you are not going to be the one in charge of the mission, and you will obey any orders you're given."

"Yes, Uncle," Sango said, filled with relief. She made her way back to her home to prepare for the mission, knowing it would be sent off soon. She had almost finished getting all her things together when Kohaku rushed into the house.

"Sango," he gasped, panting from his run over. "What are you doing?"

"I'm preparing for a mission," she said calmly.

"But you're still hurt!" Kohaku protested. "You shouldn't be going on any missions."

"Uncle Seiko gave his permission," Sango said calmly. She smiled at Kohaku. "Don't worry, I won't get involved in anything I don't think I can handle." He didn't seem reassured, so she ruffled his hair on her way out the door. "I promise, I'll be fine."

She went to the town's gate, Kirara at her heels, to meet up with the other slayers, and found Uncle Seiko waiting with two men. Both slayers were familiar to her, though she had not worked any missions with them yet. Kozue was around her Uncle's age, and he hefted his massive mace with comparable ease to Sango's use of her hiraikotsu. Aoki was much younger, only a handful of years older than Sango, and like her Uncle, his preferred weapon was twin hand axes.

"Kozue will lead this mission," Uncle Seiko said. "I wish you luck."

The journey was not an unpleasant one, though they traveled hard. Sango was somewhat alarmed at how she tired at a quicker rate than normal. She did not complain or ask for a break, but she knew the others would have marked her condition though they didn't speak of it. Despite her weariness, Sango was grateful for the effort she had to exert. She was so focused on what she was doing, she had no opportunity to think of other things.

By evening, they had arrived at the afflicted village and were warmly greeted by the village headman. "Thank goodness you have arrived," the headman said. "We have no idea what we should do about this situation. For that matter, we aren't really sure what's going on."

"You say you've been experiencing downpours of blood and demon parts?" Kozue asked.

The headman nodded, wringing his hands nervously. "We have, but we've no idea where any of it is coming from. But it is sickening many of the very old and very young."

"We have medicines that may help with that," Kozue said. Running into poisonous demons was a regular hazard for slayers, so they had developed a number of medicines over the years to counteract them.

In response to his words, Aoki handed over a bag of medicines to the headman, who looked extremely grateful and bowed deeply to them. "I cannot thank you enough for your assistance," he said. "Will you need a place to rest tonight?"

"If it can be arranged, please," Kozue said. "I'd rather not risk us walking into an unknown situation in the dark. We shall start our investigation when we have the sun on our side."

The headman provided rooms for them in his own home. Sango gratefully sank onto the futon offered her, and smiled slightly as she felt Kirara curl up near her. Hopefully with a good night's rest, she would be able to be of some use the next day.

* * *

The slayers rose with the sun, and after a hasty breakfast discussed their plans for the day. "We need to try and locate the source of the problem," Kozue said.

"I think the mountain might be a good place to start," Aoki said. Sango and Kozue turned their attention to the lone mountain in the distance. Despite the sunny day, the mountain seemed to be shrouded in a dark haze.

"That seems as good a place as any," Kozue said. "Let's go."

It was an hour hike to the base of the mountain, and the closer they got, the more ominous it seemed. Though slayers were not spiritually gifted like monks, priests, and priestesses, they did develop a natural sensitivity to demonic activities. It was a necessary survival skill in their line of work. Looking up the steep pathway, Kirara hissed and lashed her tails with disapproval.

"Whatever is up there, Kirara doesn't like it," Sango commented.

"We should be extra wary then," Kozue said. "Be prepared for attack."

As they traveled up the path they met no resistance, but the haze thickened as they went higher. The haze made it harder to breathe, and caused her half healed injuries to sting. "Miasma," she said. "This is some kind of poisonous miasma."

"Masks on," Kozue ordered.

The mask helped somewhat, but Sango still found herself struggling to keep up with them. It was frustrating, because normally it wouldn't be a struggle at all for her. By the time the path leveled out, leading to the entrance of a cave, Sango was struggling to catch her breath and fighting off waves of dizziness.

 _The miasma must be affecting me more strongly because of my injuries._ _Since I'm already weakened, it's making me more vulnerable to the effects._

"I've never encountered a miasma this strong," Kozue said. He eyed the entrance to the cave with deep wariness. "We may not be enough on our own to handle this danger."

Sango wished that Kagome and the others were here. More backup would be nice.

"We need to at least find out what it is," Aoki said.

Kozue nodded. "I agree. Sango, you stay here."

"I can keep going," Sango protested.

Kozue shook his head. "You're still hurt. We are only planning for reconnaissance at the moment, but if a fight does break out, you'll only be a liability."

Sango wanted to argue, but couldn't. She knew Kozue was right, and she had promised her uncle that she would obey orders. Even though she didn't particularly like this order, she'd listen. She wasn't going to risk putting her fellow slayers in danger. "Alright, I'll wait here."

She wanted to pace while she waited for them to return, but knew that would be a pointless waste of her energy. Instead, she sat down on an outcropping of rock, Kirara on guard beside her. The minutes slipped by, and Sango waited for them to come back impatiently. _What's taking them so long?_

Finally, she saw them returning, their gait unsteady. Sango stood to her feet. "Did you see anything?"

Kozue shook his head. "Nothing. We couldn't get far enough in before the miasma started to overwhelm us. We'd need a priest or priestess to get us any closer."

Sango scowled behind her mask, glaring at the cave entrance. "This has to be Naraku's doing, somehow."

"Are you certain?" Kozue asked.

"As sure as I can be without seeing for myself," Sango said. "Naraku is the only demon I've met that can produce a miasma like this."

"I thought you said he was supposed to be weak right now," Aoki said. "This isn't the product of a weak demon."

Sango shook her head. "I don't know how he could manage it, but it must be him."

Suddenly, there was a brilliant flare of light from the top of the mountain, still several hundred feet above them. "Kirara!" Sango called. Kirara shifted into her larger size, and Sango managed to jump onto her back without stumbling.

"Sango, wait!" Kozue shouted, but Kirara was already flying upward.

It only took moments for Kirara to fly up over the tip of the mountain. She gasped at the sight that greeted her. She was just in time to see the last of what must have been a very large demon being absorbed into Naraku. The light faded as the last of the demon was pulled inside of him.

 _No way… He made himself a new body!_

It was clear that must have been what Naraku was up to, though Sango wasn't sure how he'd managed it. But if he'd only been taking parts of demons to form his new body, and discarding the parts he didn't want, that could explain the rain of demon blood and parts that had been afflicting the village.

 _And if his new body is complete, then he's not weak anymore!_

Naraku noticed her floating there, and smiled. "I didn't expect to see you here, Sango. How has your recovery been?"

Sango grit her teeth and threw her hiraikotsu at him in answer. He dodged, which Sango had more or less expected of him. But it was still infuriating to see the ease with which he did it. Sango caught the hiraikotsu as it wheeled around back to her, ignoring the stings of pain the action cause her half healed injuries.

"Now, now," Naraku said. "That wasn't very polite. What would your father say?"

"Bastard," Sango hissed, furious to hear Naraku mention her father.

"Hm, that seems like an unusual choice," Naraku said. Power like clouds pooled under his feet, allowing him to float up in the air. Sango could feel Kirara's muscles tensing up under her, in preparation to dodge an attack if necessary. "As amusing as it would be to keep playing with you," Naraku said, "I have things to do." He flew off away from her, and Sango didn't bother to have Kirara follow him. She was in no condition to try and take Naraku on by herself right now.

Instead, Sango directed Kirara to fly back down to the ledge where Kozue and Aoki were still waiting for her. Kozue looked highly displeased with her as Kirara landed, as well he should. She had ignored a direct order, and run off without backup while injured. Had she been in charge of a mission and a younger slayer in her charge had behaved the same way, Sango would have been furious. But for the moment, all Kozue said was, "Well, what'd you find out?"

"It was Naraku," Sango said. "He was making a new body for himself."

"And I guess that light means he finished it," Kozue said.

Sango nodded. "Yes. It looks like he absorbed a number of demons to create it."

"If that's the case, depending on what kind of demons he used, then he could potentially be stronger than he was before," Kozue said. He sighed. "This isn't good, but if he's finished, then that should at least mean the village won't have any more trouble." He leveled a stern glare at Sango then. "It also makes what you did even more foolish."

"Someone had to go see what that light was," Sango said.

"And Kirara would have been willing to take either one of us to see what it was," Kozue said. "What if Naraku had attacked you?"

"If Naraku had decided to attack, it wouldn't really have mattered if I was injured or not," Sango said. "He's too much for one person to take on alone. Even if all of us fought him, I'm not sure we could win, especially if his new body is more powerful than his old one."

Kozue sighed. "In that, I suppose you have a point. Well, we'd best get on our way then."

"I'm not going back to the village," Sango said. "Inuyasha and the others need to be warned that Naraku is back. We weren't expecting him to recover so soon."

Kozue nodded. "Very well. Be safe."

Kirara took off then, flying in the direction of Kaede's village. _Even with Kirara flying me, I don't think I'll make it until tomorrow._ Though it wasn't like Inuyasha would actually be in the village right now, as his week in the future wasn't up yet. _He may need to cut his break short now._ A break had seemed like a fine idea when they'd thought that Naraku would be out of commission for a while, but who could have predicted that he'd have a new body for himself in a matter of days?

 _No decisions about what we'll do next can be made until I warn the others._ With this in mind, Sango pushed Kirara as hard as she dared without leading her to exhaustion.

Traveling in this manner, Sango made it to the village early the next morning. She found Miroku, Kaede, and Shippo at Kaede's hut. When Kirara landed, Sango slid off her back, and Kirara instantly transformed into her smaller form and curled up for a well-earned rest. "Thanks, Kirara," Sango said, petting her gently.

"Hey, Sango!" Shippo called out cheerfully.

"Welcome back," Miroku said. "But I had thought you planned to stay with your family for longer than this."

"I did," Sango said. "But I had information I needed to get to you. Naraku's replaced his body already."

Miroku's pleasant expression darkened into a frown, and his fist clenched in what Sango thought was probably a subconscious reaction to Naraku's name being mentioned. "You are certain?"

She nodded. "I am. Is Kagome around? She needs to hear this too."

"She's in the future right now, training," Shippo said.

"Then I'll have to tell her when she gets back. Let's go inside and I'll explain what happened." They settled inside Kaede's hut, and Sango told them the story of what had happened.

"This is disturbing news indeed," Miroku said.

"So it is," Kaede agreed. "Perhaps it would be best to call Inuyasha back early so that your hunt may begin once more."

"That's what I was thinking," Sango said. "It's one thing to take a break when we think Naraku is out of commission, but something else to take a break while he's active."

"Inuyasha won't like it, but you're probably right," Miroku said. "We'll wait for Kagome to return and have her tell Inuyasha; he'll take it best from her."

Sango frowned. "How else would we get a message to him? Kagome is the only other person who can go through the well."

Miroku's eyes twinkled. "Ah, about that. You see, you aren't the only one who's had interesting adventures the past few days."


	9. Chapter 9

Tetsusaiga and Tenseiga

Inuyasha was in a good mood as he walked home Wednesday afternoon. His wrists had finally healed enough that he had been able to attend his lesson with Sensei, and it felt great to be getting back into the swing of things. Also, with Hojo's help, he had managed to make a sizable dent in his makeup work over the past few days. By the time he left to go to the past again this weekend, he would be very nearly caught up.

 _Of course I'll get behind again if I'm there any length of time, but that's okay. I won't have Ms. Sato demanding to know where I am anymore._

When he arrived at his home, he was surprised to find Kagome there in the living room waiting for him. "Hey, Kagome, what are you doing here?" he asked. He couldn't suppress a glimmer of unease. The last time she had showed up in the afternoon like this was to inform him of Hayasaka's enslavement by Naraku.

"Bad news," she said. "Naraku's already recovered from his injuries."

"What?" Inuyasha asked. "How? He only had a head left!"

"Apparently he absorbed a bunch of demons to make a new body for himself," Kagome said.

Inuyasha wanted to protest that that didn't even make any sense, but then he remembered the story of how Onigumo had become Naraku in the first place and decided that what made sense probably wasn't as important as what actually worked. "That's just great," he said sourly. "I thought he'd be out of the way a lot longer."

Kagome shook her head. "We all did. Unfortunately, we were wrong." She hesitated for a moment before plunging on. "We were thinking that it might be a good idea for you to go ahead and come back. If Naraku's back on the scene, we can't really afford to take long breaks."

Inuyasha's frown deepened. He needed this time in the present. Even if Ms. Sato had been annoying, she had also been right. He really couldn't afford to miss too much school, or he'd end up repeating the ninth grade. If he had a bad reputation at school now, repeating a grade could only make it worse, and anyway Inuyasha didn't like the idea of facing a school year without Hojo. But on the other hand, Kagome was right in saying that if Naraku was out and active, he was sure to be causing quite a bit of trouble, and they couldn't really afford to not take measures to try and stop him. _Times like this is when I wish there were two of me,_ Inuyasha thought sourly.

"I still need to go to school tomorrow," Inuyasha said. "I have a test that I shouldn't miss, and since Ms. Sato knows about my trips to the past now, I think I should warn her that I'll be gone for a while." He also wanted to tell Mine that she didn't need to prepare any lunches for him. Though he hadn't asked her to start doing it in the first place, it seemed rude to just not show up without warning her, and her making him a lunch when there was no real need to do so. "I also want to tell Sensei," Inuyasha added. "After that, I'll head back."

Kagome nodded. "Okay. That sounds fine."

Mrs. Higurashi poked her head out of the kitchen. "Kagome, would you like to stay for dinner?"

Kagome smiled at her. "I'd love to. Thanks for the invitation."

"Oh, it's no trouble at all, dear," Mrs. Higurashi insisted. "Dinner will be ready soon."

As his mother disappeared back into the kitchen, Inuyasha wondered just what he was supposed to do with Kagome until dinner was ready. They didn't often have downtime like this together, when there was nothing pressing that either of them needed to get done.

 _Well, actually, I do need to shower. Wish Sensei would install showers at his dojo so we could just shower there when we're done with practice._

"I need to wash up," Inuyasha said. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

He felt bad for leaving Kagome alone though, since she was a guest, so when he got upstairs, he stuck his head in Souta's room and said, "Hey, squirt, Kagome's here and she's staying for dinner."

As Inuyasha had expected, Souta dropped the comics he had been reading and dashed downstairs to say hi to Kagome. Inuyasha showered and changed as quickly as he could, not even bothering to take the time to dry his hair. When he came down, everyone was getting settled around the dinner table. Souta had already claimed the seat beside Kagome, so Inuyasha sat down across from her.

"It all looks so delicious," Kagome complimented, and Mrs. Higurashi beamed at her.

"Thank you, Kagome," she said. "I hope you enjoy it, and you can come have dinner with us anytime."

Kagome smiled back at her. "Thank you, Mrs. Higurashi. That means a lot."

 _She probably hasn't had many family dinners like this,_ Inuyasha thought, and thinking of what Kagome must have dealt with growing up as a half demon made him think of Jinenji and his mother, a topic he'd been trying to avoid remembering all week. But now that they were in his mind, it was hard for Inuyasha to ignore the memories, even with the warm chatter going on around him.

 _It just isn't fair everything they have had to go through, just because they weren't born human,_ Inuyasha thought. He would have liked to say that it would be better for them here, in modern times, but he knew that wasn't true. Sure, his family, Hojo, Sensei, Mine, and Ms. Sato were all okay with Kagome not being human…Actually, that was more people being okay with it than Inuyasha had realized before. _Guess I should add Dr. Haruki to that list too, since Sensei told him everything. Almost forgot about him._

But even if a surprising number of people were okay with it, Inuyasha was certain that a much larger number of people wouldn't be if the world at large found out about Kagome or demons. After all, many humans couldn't stand other _humans_ who were a little bit different. There probably would be plenty of people that considered demons evil or dangerous, and then there would be the scientists that would want to study them. No, his time wouldn't really be any safer for Kagome than her own time, and that was the frustrating thing. It seemed that there was literally no where she could go where she would be accepted for who she was, rather than being reviled for what she was.

 _Her parents had to know what kind of life she was going to end up facing. It isn't like the prejudice against half demons is unknown in her time. Why have kids when you know that almost everyone your kid meets is going to end up hating them, and might even try to kill them?_

Inuyasha didn't think he could do that. It didn't seem right.

"What are you thinking about so hard over there, Inuyasha?" Gramps asked, cutting through Inuyasha's thought process and reminding him of where he was. "You aren't paying a bit of attention to the conversation."

"Sorry," Inuyasha said, his mind scrambling to come up with something other than the truth. There was no way he could admit he'd been thinking about the ethics of having a half demon child, especially not with Kagome sitting right there. "I was thinking about my test tomorrow." He could feel heat creeping up his face at the lie, and hoped that they assumed the flush was from embarrassment at drifting off, and not realize that he was lying.

"I'm sure you'll do fine," his mother said. "You don't need to worry about it."

"I don't know," Souta said. "He has been missing a lot of school. It might be hard for him."

Inuyasha glared at his little brother. "Thanks a lot, brat."

Souta grinned at him. "Anytime."

The meal came to an end and Kagome excused herself. "I'd better be heading back," she said. "I'm sure the others are wondering what's taking so long."

"Guess I'll see you tomorrow afternoon then," Inuyasha said.

She nodded. "See you then."

* * *

"I hate tests," Inuyasha complained as soon as lunch time rolled around.

"At least it's over with," Hojo said. "The rest of the day should be easier now."

Inuyasha's continued litany of complaints was cut off by Mine's arrival. To his surprise, today she was carrying two lunches instead of just one, as well as what appeared to be a small folded blanket. "Hey, guys! So, it's such a nice day out today, I was thinking we could all go eat up on the roof," she said brightly.

Her suggestion caught Inuyasha off guard. Normally when she presented him with his lunch, she stuck around long enough to exchange a few comments, collect the previous day's bento box, and then headed on back to her own classroom. She'd never tried to eat with them before, so this was something new.

"That sounds like a great idea," Hojo said, standing. "Come on, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha sighed and stood, knowing there was no use arguing when both of them had gotten this idea in their heads. Anyway, it was nice outside, and Mine was probably right that eating on the roof of the school would be pleasant. Besides, it made it easier for Inuyasha to tell her he wouldn't be at school for a while without anyone else overhearing.

They made their way up to the roof. It was nice up there. There were no other students present, and a faint breeze prevented the sunlight from feeling too hot. Mine spread the blanket out so they could sit on it, and then handed over Inuyasha's lunch. Inuyasha opened it quickly, eager to see what Mine had prepared for him today. He found rice, savory grilled fish, and pickled vegetables to go with it. "Thanks for the food," he said before digging in.

"You're welcome," Mine said. "Do you have any requests for tomorrow's lunch?"

Inuyasha swallowed his mouthful of fish before replying. "Actually, I won't be here tomorrow. I'm heading back to the past this afternoon, and I'm not sure how long I'll be there, so you don't need to worry about making lunches for me."

"I thought you said you were going to be here all week," Hojo said.

"That was the plan," Inuyasha said. "But some stuff has come up, and I need to go back sooner than I thought."

He didn't mention Naraku. He had told Hojo some about Naraku in their conversations, though not much, and had barely mentioned him at all when telling Mine and Ms. Sato about his adventures to the past. He didn't feel like getting into all that right now. Talking about Naraku might spoil his appetite, and he really wanted to enjoy his food.

"Well, be careful," Hojo said.

"I always am," Inuyasha said.

Hojo rolled his eyes. "Sure you are."

"Have you told Ms. Sato yet?" Mine asked.

"Not yet," Inuyasha said. "I'll tell her when school lets out."

The warning bell rang, letting them know it was time to get back to class. Hojo helped Mine quickly fold the blanket they'd used before they went down to their separate classrooms. The rest of the school day flew by, and after it ended Inuyasha made his way to the teacher offices to speak to Ms. Sato. She was in there at her desk, and several other teachers were present as well.

Inuyasha hesitated for a moment. He had thought to find Ms. Sato alone. He didn't want to risk another teacher overhearing him. But before he could decide whether or not he should just leave, Ms. Sato spotted him. "Inuyasha, come in," she said.

Left with little other choice now, Inuyasha approached her desk. "What can I do for you?" she asked.

"Um, well," Inuyasha stammered, keenly aware of the presence of the other teachers, even if they didn't seem to be paying attention to him.

Ms. Sato frowned and said, "You aren't starting to feel sick, are you?"

Inuyasha almost said no, until he realized that Ms. Sato knew he'd never been sick at all this year, and she was probably speaking in code to refer to his trips in the past. "Yes," he said. "I am."

"I hope you'll feel better soon," she said. She picked up a binder off her desk and held it out to him. "In case you're too sick to come back to school, you should have this."

Inuyasha accepted the binder. "What is it?"

"Schoolwork," Ms. Sato said. "I put it together based on the makeup work you've turned in, and how you've been doing on in class assignments this week. I expect you to make use of it if you have to stay home, and to return it to me when you come back. It should help you not stay quite so behind."

Inuyasha stared at her a moment, surprised beyond words. She had to be plenty busy already, but she had taken the time to do this for him. After the rough start he'd had with her this year, he wouldn't have expected such an effort from her to help him.

"Thanks," he finally managed.

Ms. Sato nodded, and then turned back to her work. "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"Right, see you later," Inuyasha said. He left the teachers' office and started down the hallway at a brisk walk. He wasn't worried about arriving late to his lesson that afternoon despite his detour to speak with Ms. Sato, since he usually arrived at Sensei's dojo a few minutes early anyway.

Suddenly Inuyasha stumbled to a halt in the hallway as a bright, flickering presence flashed across his senses. He had more or less gotten used to sensing the presence of others in the past, but sensing the presence of someone here in the present was highly unusual, _especially_ in his school.

 _That was a demon!_

Inuyasha was sure of that much, though the presence had come and gone too quickly for him to tell whether it was friendly or dangerous. But a demon's presence in his school couldn't go uninvestigated, and Inuyasha rushed down the hall in the direction that he'd sensed it. Quickly rounding a corner, Inuyasha almost ran into someone.

"Dear me, where's the fire?" the person asked, and Inuyasha realized it was Principal Miyaki.

"Sorry, sir," Inuyasha said. "I didn't realize anyone was there."

"Oh, there's no harm done," Principal Miyaki said. He smiled benevolently. "Running late to your club?"

"No, not really," Inuyasha said. Since he trained with Sensei every day after school, he didn't have time for school clubs. Inuyasha glanced over the principal's head to see if there was anyone else around. He didn't see anyone, which probably shouldn't have been a surprise. If a demon had been close enough for him to see, he'd definitely be able to sense it as well.

 _Maybe it was just passing by?_ Kagome traveled by rooftop sometimes in the present. It wasn't unreasonable to suspect that other demons, if there were any living in the present, might travel the same way.

 _But I'm pretty sure the presence wasn't coming from above me…_

"Are you looking for someone then?" Principal Miyaki asked.

Inuyasha almost jumped at his words. He'd been so wrapped up in his thoughts, he'd completely forgotten the principal was there.

 _Crap, what do I tell him? I can't just say I was searching for a demon I thought I sensed._

A door halfway down the hall slid open, and Mine stepped out. As soon as she noticed Inuyasha, her expression brightened. "Inuyasha, hey!"

"Oh ho, I see," said Principal Miyaki with twinkling eyes. "You two kids have fun now!" He waved as he walked off.

Mine tilted her head in confusion. "Does he think we're about to go on a date or something?"

Inuyasha flushed at her blunt question. How Mine could say such awkward things with such a straight face he would never understand. "I don't try to figure out what he's thinking," he said.

Mine shrugged carelessly. "Oh well. I'm off to sewing club! I'll see you later, Inuyasha!"

"Bye," Inuyasha said. He glanced around the now empty hall one more time before heading for the exit. Whatever he might have sensed, it was probably long gone by now. _And now I do need to hurry, or I really will be late for the lesson with Sensei!_

* * *

Inuyasha dallied long enough in the locker room after the lesson that most of the others would be gone when he went out to let Sensei know he'd be out for a few days. After informing Sensei of his change in plans, Inuyasha told him about what he'd sensed earlier at school as well.

"There was a demon at your school?" Sensei asked, frowned.

"I don't know if they were at the school, or just passing by," Inuyasha said. "I only sensed them for a second and then they were gone."

"Hm," Sensei said, crossing his arms and frowning as he considered this information.

"I don't think it's really anything to worry about," Inuyasha said.

"Maybe not from that particular demon," Sensei said. "I'm more concerned about the implications."

"Implications?" Inuyasha asked blankly.

"That the demons aren't really all gone," Sensei said. "Between this, the Noh mask, and the tatarimokke, I'd say it's much more likely that there are demons left who are simply in hiding, and if they're in hiding then they might know of ways to shield their presence from people like you who could sense them."

Inuyasha stared at him. "You mean there could be demons all around here in the present, and I won't have any idea?"

"All around might be a stretch," Sensei said. "If they're in hiding instead of trying to take over the world or something, I'd imagine that there aren't a lot of them. But there are probably some. What worries me, Inuyasha, is what they might do if they notice you."

Inuyasha swallowed. That was kind of an alarming thought. "Well, if they're so determined not to be noticed, maybe they'll just leave me alone."

"I hope so," Sensei said. He let out a breath of air. "Just try to be as aware here as you would be traveling in the past."

"I will," Inuyasha said.

Sensei's words of caution were still bothering Inuyasha later that evening when he traveled back through the well, making him more reluctant to go than he might have otherwise been. Normally when he traveled to the past, he was perfectly sure that his family would be completely safe in the present, but now he wasn't quite as sure.

 _If a demon attacked them while I wasn't there, they'd have no way to protect themselves._

Sure, Gramps had a lot of head knowledge when it came to dealing with things like ghosts and demons, but he didn't have any power to back that knowledge up.

 _Maybe I should learn how to make protection charms or something for the house. That way even if I'm not there, they'd still have some kind of defense…_

"Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha snapped out of his thoughts in time to catch Shippo as he jumped at him. "Hey, Shippo," Inuyasha said, grinning.

"Did you remember to bring my treat?" Shippo asked eagerly, his bushy tail flicking back and forth. "Did you?"

"I did," Inuyasha said. "But you'll have to get down so I can get to it."

Shippo hopped out of his arms, allowing Inuyasha to slide off his backpack and dig through for Shippo's treat. "I hope you like them," Inuyasha said, pulling out a small bag of lollipops.

"What are they?" Shippo asked, sniffing the treat.

"It's a type of candy," Inuyasha explained. "You're supposed to suck on them."

Shippo removed the wrapper from one of them and stuck it in his mouth. His green eyes widened. "These are awesome!"

Inuyasha laughed; it would have been hard not to be pleased with Shippo's enthusiastic response. He found the others at Kaede's hut.

"Welcome back, Inuyasha," Kaede greeted him.

"Thanks," Inuyasha said. He glanced over at Sango, remembering how injured she'd been the last he'd seen her. "How are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm fine," Sango said, smiling at him. "I'm just about completely healed now."

"Good," Inuyasha said. "So, do we have a plan?"

"We'll head out first thing in the morning," Kagome said. "Sango's going to lead us back to the mountain where she saw Naraku, and we'll try and track him down from there."

Inuyasha nodded. It was more of a plan than they usually had at least. "I still can't believe Naraku managed to heal himself so quickly."

"It is unfortunate," Miroku said. "We will have to be careful not to underestimate him like that again."

 _Note to self; next time, disintegrate all of Naraku, including his head._

* * *

They left early in the morning, and decided that speed was of the most importance. The sooner they could get to the mountain, the less time Naraku's trail had to go cold on them. Because of this, their traveling arrangements had Sango, Miroku, and Shippo flying on Kirara, while Inuyasha rode piggyback with Kagome.

 _How do I always end up in this situation with her?_

Not that Inuyasha would have wanted Kagome to carry Miroku; the monk would be sure to try something perverted in such close quarters with Kagome. But he didn't see why Kagome couldn't have carried, say, Sango, while Inuyasha rode Kirara with Miroku and Shippo.

 _Admit it,_ he thought, _this wouldn't be nearly so awkward if you didn't have a crush on Kagome._

Not that he'd ever really liked Kagome carrying him, even before he'd had a crush on her. But it was worse now, with the embarrassingly intimate position that he was fully aware of, though Kagome seemed to accept it as a matter of course. And if Kagome didn't see anything embarrassing or awkward about her carrying him around, then that could only mean she didn't see him as a romantic possibility.

 _I don't even know if she likes guys like me. For all I know, she'd prefer guys like Hojo, or the monk._ It wasn't exactly a question he could ask her about though.

"You're being awfully quiet, Inuyasha," Kagome said.

It took all his self-control not to start when Kagome's voice interrupted his thoughts. But no amount of self-control could prevent him from blushing, given the embarrassing content of his thoughts. Inuyasha was just grateful that Kagome couldn't see his face at that moment.

"I was just thinking," he said. _Please don't ask what. Please._

"What were you thinking about?" Kagome asked.

 _Crap._

"Just, you know, school stuff," Inuyasha stammered.

"I see," Kagome said, and whether that meant she believed him or she could see through his lie and just wasn't going to call him on it, Inuyasha didn't know. "Are you going to get really far behind again?"

"Probably some," Inuyasha said. "But Ms. Sato put together a packet for me to work on while I'm here so I won't get so far behind."

"That's good," Kagome said. "I guess it's helpful that she knows the truth now."

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "She'll be able to cover for me at school, so I won't get in trouble for missing anymore, hopefully."

Mentioning school made Inuyasha remember the demonic presence he had sensed the day before, and he decided to tell Kagome about it, and the conclusions that Sensei had drawn from it. "Do you think he could be right, that there are demons hiding out in the future?"

"Could be," Kagome said. "Some demons are skilled at hiding their presence from others, even priests and priestesses. And honestly, a few demons hiding out makes more sense to me than to think they're all gone in the future."

"But you haven't noticed any when you were in the future?" Inuyasha asked.

"No," Kagome said. "But that doesn't mean they aren't there. Like I said, some demons are really good at hiding their presence."

"You don't think they'll come after the jewel shards I have, do you?" Inuyasha asked. He couldn't help the worry that seeped into his tone when he thought of his family potentially in the line of fire.

"If their goal is to go as unnoticed as possible, I don't think it's very likely," Kagome said. "But I can't say that it definitely won't happen."

That was less encouraging than Inuyasha had hoped for. "Great," Inuyasha sighed.

"Your family will be fine, Inuyasha," Kagome said, surprising Inuyasha by getting to the heart of what concerned him the most. "I really don't believe that anyone going after the jewel would target your family, especially if you aren't there. There wouldn't be any point to it if the jewel is their target, and it would only increase the chances of them being noticed by humans in general. If you want, I'm sure Miroku would help you make some protective charms to prevent an attack, just in case."

This reassurance did help, and it amazed Inuyasha that Kagome knew him well enough already to know what he'd be most concerned about in this situation. It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her just how awesome she was, but he bit back the words. Saying something like that would tell her far too much about how he felt about her. Instead, Inuyasha said, "Thanks, Kagome."

"You're welcome," Kagome said.

They eventually stopped for lunch, and Miroku asked Sango whether it was a good idea for Kirara to keep flying them or if they'd need to walk.

Sango frowned as she considered. "I don't want to wear her out, but we do need to move quickly. I think we should walk for the next hour or so to give her a rest, and then we can continue flying. We wouldn't get to the mountain tonight even if she did fly us all afternoon, so I don't think going slower for a while will hurt us in the long run."

With that decision made, they walked after lunch. Inuyasha was glad of it, and not simply because he found riding piggyback with Kagome awkward. It was nice to have a chance to stretch his legs; getting carried for hours on end left him feeling a little stiff.

They had only been walking for half an hour, when they heard a sudden lowing, like a cow. "That's weird," Shippo said from his perch on Inuyasha's shoulder. "I don't see any cows around here."

Then Inuyasha sensed it, a demonic presence coming their way fast, and from above. "Up there!" he said pointing, but no sooner than he had pointed the figure out, it landed. It was some kind of three eyed demon cow, being ridden by a skinny, wrinkled old demon carrying a hammer that was as long as the Tetsusaiga when it was transformed.

"What on earth?" Miroku asked, summing up Inuyasha's feelings nicely.

"Kagome!" the old demon said. "Draw your sword and face me!"

Kagome frowned, and didn't draw the Tetsusaiga. "Who are you? How do you know my name?"

The old demon waved his hammer at her, and instead of answering her questions cried out, "I'm coming at you whether you draw your sword or not!"

He moved faster than Inuyasha would have expected for someone who looked so old and worn, but Kagome moved faster, dodging out of the way of his hammer, still without drawing her sword. "I'm not going to fight you over nothing!" Kagome said. "Tell me who you are and what quarrel you have with me!"

The old man stared at her for a moment, but instead of attacking again, he just leaned on his hammer and sighed heavily. "Poor Tetsusaiga," he said. "What use is a sword that you won't use? No wonder you haven't been able to master its true power."

Kagome's jaw dropped. "What? What do you know about my sword?"

"Perhaps I can help explain," said an unexpected but familiar voice, which caused everyone to focus on Kagome's shoulder.

"Myoga!" Kagome exclaimed. "What's going on here?"

"This demon is Totosai," Myoga explained. "He is the one who forged the Tetsusaiga."

This scrawny old demon was the one who'd made a sword as impressive as the Tetsusaiga? In spite of himself, Inuyasha was impressed.

"Perhaps we should have a seat, and we can explain why we're here," Myoga said. They found a shady area where they could settle down comfortably, and Myoga continued with his explanation. "The Tetsusaiga is a powerful weapon Kagome, forged from one of your father's fangs, with the ability to slay a hundred demons in one swing. However, up till now, you haven't been able to master that power, though you were able to tap into it when those demons attacked Mushin's temple."

Inuyasha remembered that well. He'd really thought they were about to die, when he'd seen all those demons ready to attack in numbers so large they'd blocked out the sky. With just one swing of her sword, Kagome had killed all of them.

"That power was the wind scar," Totosai put in. "But, I doubt you'll be able to master it."

Kagome stiffened, and Inuyasha glared at Totosai. "Of course she can master it!" Inuyasha snapped.

Totosai snorted. "How, when she won't even draw it? Oh, what a sad fate for a sword to face! If you won't use it, you may as well let me melt it down."

"The best swordsmen never draw their swords," Kagome said. "That's what my sensei told me when I first started training with him. So no, I _will not_ use the Tetsusaiga's power recklessly. But if you can teach me to master the wind scar, and to use the Tetsusaiga's power more effectively, then I would be honored to learn from you, Totosai." She finished her statement with a bow, waiting for Totosai's judgement.

Totosai stared at her, his round, bulging eyes unblinking. The seconds seemed to drag out like hours, and then suddenly Totosai laughed. "I think I may have been wrong about you! You do have potential after all."

Inuyasha smirked, well satisfied with Totosai's response to Kagome. He was sure that Sensei would be proud of how she'd handled herself as well, and made a mental note to be sure and tell him.

"But before I teach you the secret to using the wind scar, I must ask a favor of you in repayment," Totosai said.

"What favor?" Kagome asked.

"I need you to protect me!" Totosai declared.

"Protect you from what, exactly?" Miroku asked.

"A few days ago, a demon marched into my forge and demanded that I make him a sword that rivaled the power of Tetsusaiga," Totosai explained. "He said he'd kill me if I refused him!"

Inuyasha suddenly had a bad feeling. "Wait, a demon that wants a sword more powerful than Tetsusaiga? You're not talking about _Sesshomaru_ are you?"

Totosai shuddered at the name. "Yes, that's the one! And because I refused to make him a sword, he is surely hunting me down to kill me!"

"Sesshomaru, that's Kagome's half-brother, right?" Sango asked. "Why'd you refuse to make him a sword?"

"Because he's evil incarnate!" Totosai said.

"He isn't evil!" Kagome protested.

"Isn't evil?" Inuyasha repeated incredulously. "Kagome, he tried to kill you!"

"Well, he saved us last time!" Kagome responded defensively.

"Yeah, so he could kill you himself later!" Inuyasha reminded her. "And I for one completely agree with Totosai's decision not to make him a sword!"

"Thank you," Totosai said. "Besides, the ungrateful whelp already has one of my swords."

"Say what?" Inuyasha asked.

"Yes, the magnificent sword Tenseiga," Totosai continued. "It was also forged from one of the Inu no Taisho's fangs, and when it was made he clearly instructed that in the event of his death the Tenseiga was to go to Sesshomaru and the Tetsusaiga was to go to Kagome."

Inuyasha frowned. Now that Totosai mentioned it, he realized that Sesshomaru had always had a sword, but he hadn't bothered to use it in the fight against Kagome. For that matter, he hadn't really used it in the fight against Kawaramaru except to block the other's sword from killing Kagome. Then he'd used that whip made of light to kill Kawaramaru.

"If he already has one of your swords, why is he so determined to get another?" Miroku asked.

"Probably because the Tenseiga isn't a fighting sword," Totosai said.

"Wait, it's a sword you can't fight with?" Inuyasha asked. "How does that work?"

"Well, it doesn't cut people," Totosai said. "If Sesshomaru were to try and use it on someone, it would just go right through them causing no harm at all."

"But if it isn't a weapon, what can it do?" Sango asked.

"It is a sword of healing," Totosai said, "meant to save lives. With one swing, it can save a hundred people, even to the point of bringing souls back from the dead! I wanted to call it Coffin Cheater, but your father insisted that it be called Tenseiga instead. I suppose that is classier."

"That's amazing," Kagome said.

"Isn't it?" Totosai said smugly. "It's nice to have someone appreciate my work! But of course in order to wield the Tenseiga, one must have kindness in their heart. Honestly, I doubt Sesshomaru will ever be able to make use of it."

 _Guess that explains why Sesshomaru wants the Tetsusaiga so badly. He doesn't seem like the type of person who'd be interested in saving anyone._ Inuyasha refrained from saying this out loud however, knowing that it would only upset Kagome if he did.

Inuyasha stiffened as he suddenly became aware of a powerful, swiftly approaching presence. He jumped to his feet and whirled around to see a large, two headed dragon flying toward them. The right head opened its mouth and shot out blue lightning at the group.

There wasn't time to dodge the attack, which hit the ground at the groups' feet. The force of the blow threw Inuyasha back several feet, and he hit the ground hard enough to wind him. Spots flashed before his eyes, and he couldn't see well enough to know what had happened to the others. Before he had recovered himself, something grabbed hold of his forearms and yanked him up, wind rushing past him. Blinking the spots away and finally gasping air into his lungs, Inuyasha realized that the dragon had grabbed hold of him and was flying him away from the group. Already, they were an alarming distance away. He could see Kirara flying into the air with a figure that was probably Sango on her back, but the dragon was flying faster and had the advantage of a head start. It took little time for Kirara and Sango to fade from view.

 _Crap,_ Inuyasha thought. _What do I do now?_

He had lost hold of his staff in the explosion, so he had no weapon to defend himself with. He thought he might be able to purify the dragon, but they were high enough in the air that without someone there to catch him he would surely fall to his death.

 _I am screwed._


	10. Chapter 10

The True Owner of the Great Sword

Panic flooded Kagome as she saw Inuyasha taken off by the two headed dragon. "Inuyasha!" she cried, and jumped after him. But before she'd made it to the full height of her jump, a burning sensation wrapped around her ankle, and she was suddenly slammed back into the ground. Pushing herself back up, she looked over and saw Sesshomaru striding toward them.

"Leaving so soon, little sister?" he asked, mockery echoing off of every syllable.

"Sango, go after him!" Kagome snapped. Clearly Sesshomaru wasn't going to let her go after Inuyasha. Kirara transformed, and Sango jumped onto her back without a word and took off after him.

Kagome glared at Sesshomaru. "That was your dragon, wasn't it? How dare you kidnap Inuyasha like that?"

"He was in the way," Sesshomaru responded. His gaze drifted over to Totosai. "Now, Totosai. Are you going to make me my sword?"

Totosai ducked behind Kagome before poking his head around her and responding, "No way! Besides, you already have a sword I made, ungrateful whelp!"

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed. "You would suggest this useless blade is worthy of myself?"

Totosai yelped and pulled back farther behind Kagome.

"If you will not make me a new sword, then you are of no use to me," Sesshomaru said.

Kagome drew the Tetsusaiga, light flaring as it shifted into its larger form. "I won't let you kill anyone, Sesshomaru," she said.

Sesshomaru's lips curled up in a smirk. "What makes you think I haven't already?"

"What?" Kagome asked blankly.

"I only needed to get your human out of the way," Sesshomaru said. "I had no need to hold him prisoner."

Kagome heard Miroku's sharp intake of breath, and Shippo's distressed whimper, but it seemed as though the sounds came from miles away. Kagome felt as though the world had dropped out from under her feet, like she was standing in a numb, empty void.

"You're lying," she said.

His smirk widened, his golden eyes gleamed, and Kagome realized that Sesshomaru was _laughing_ at her. He was saying he had killed one of her dearest friends, and he thought it was _funny._

 _Inuyasha was right,_ Kagome realized. _Sesshomaru…he'll never see me as family. He'll never consider me worthy._

Inuyasha had seen what she'd been too willfully blind to acknowledge. And now Inuyasha was gone forever.

Sesshomaru rushed her, and Kagome raised the Tetsusaiga in defense, but not quickly enough. Sesshomaru's hand latched onto her wrist, and instantly she could feel his acid eating into her skin. "You don't deserve this sword, Kagome," Sesshomaru hissed. "Will you relinquish it, or shall I remove your hand?"

 _Bastard!_

Kagome balled up her left hand into a fist and punched Sesshomaru with all the furious strength she could muster. It didn't do him any serious injury, but the blow did break his hold on her right arm and cause him to stumble back a step, giving her enough room to put the sword between them. "I'm going to kill you!" Kagome declared.

"How will you manage that, when you can't even use the wind scar?" Sesshomaru scoffed. He lashed out at her with his whip, but Kagome blocked it with the Tetsusaiga. He struck again and again, so quickly all Kagome could do was block. His presence pressed down on her, even more suffocating and oppressive than the presence of that mass of demons had been at Mushin's temple.

 _Tetsusaiga, please!_ Kagome silently begged her sword. _You were forged to protect, so help me protect my friends! And help me avenge the friend I couldn't protect!_

She felt it then, an answering pulse from the Tetsusaiga, pushing back against Sesshomaru's presence. There was a fissure, she realized, between the presence of the Tetsusaiga and Sesshomaru's, and that fissure crackled with pent up power.

 _That's it!_

Kagome jumped to the side to get out from under Sesshomaru's relentless blows, gritting her teeth against the pain when she wasn't quite fast enough to dodge the last hit and his whip cut through her robe to slice along her side, leaving a burning trail of poison in its wake. In the second it took Sesshomaru to turn with her, Kagome struck, slicing through the fissure and releasing all the pent up power. It roared out from her in a massive wave, slamming into Sesshomaru, and she felt his body melt away under the blow.

The roar died down, revealing deep gouges in the earth, but there was no trace of Sesshomaru left.

"He's gone," Shippo said, breaking the silence. "You killed Sesshomaru!"

"I don't think so," Totosai said.

"What?" Miroku asked. "But there's nothing left of him."

Totosai shook his head. "That's not because he's dead, though I'm sure he's quite hurt. Tenseiga acted on its own and saved him."

Tears blurred Kagome's vision. The pain of her breaking heart was far worse than the pain of the physical injuries Sesshomaru had given her. "Who cares about Sesshomaru?" she snapped. What did he matter when Inuyasha was gone? A new level of pain hit her when she realized that she was going to have to tell his family, and Sensei. How was she going to tell them something like this?

Sheathing the Tetsusaiga, Kagome took off running in the direction the dragon had flown in with Inuyasha, ignoring the others as they called after her.

 _Inuyasha! Please, Inuyasha! Don't be dead!_

* * *

Flying dangling from a dragon's claws was far less pleasant than flying on Kirara. But finally, after what seemed like an age, the dragon dipped down toward the ground and let him go. It wasn't a perfect landing, Inuyasha stumbled a bit, but he didn't fall flat on his face which was something at least.

He glared up at the dragon, which was still floating in the air above him, and for the first time noticed the toad creature that followed Sesshomaru around was riding on its back. "You!" Inuyasha gasped in surprise. "You're Sesshomaru's lackey!"

"Hmph," the creature said. "My name is Jaken, pathetic human! And if it were up to me, you would be dead now. But Lord Sesshomaru intends to kill you himself after he finishes off that half breed and claims the Tetsusaiga, which is rightfully his."

Inuyasha's temper flared at Jaken's casual speech of killing Kagome. Dipping down he scooped up a rock and threw it at Jaken, knocking the toad off of the dragon's back. Only one of the heads bothered to track Jaken's fall, and neither seemed to particularly care about his wellbeing.

"Kagome isn't going to die!" Inuyasha snapped. "And when I see Sesshomaru, I'm going to sit him into a crater a mile deep!"

Whirling about, Inuyasha began to march back in the direction he'd come from. It didn't take much time for him to realize how long his return journey was going to take compared to how long it had taken him to get out this far. Walking through the woods with no path to follow was not nearly as swift a mode of travel as flying out in the dragon's claws had been.

But he'd seen Kirara and Sango flying after him, even if they'd fallen behind quickly. _I wonder if she could have kept up better if she hadn't already been flying all morning._

Well, there was nothing to be done about that now. Inuyasha would have to keep going, and keep an eye out for Kirara overhead.

 _Man, at this rate, the fight might be over by the time I get back._

Inuyasha wasn't comfortable with that thought. He knew how Kagome felt about fighting Sesshomaru, and that she wouldn't fight him to save her own life. He'd told Jaken that there was no way Kagome would die in a fight against Sesshomaru, but truthfully it was an all too possible result.

A shadow passed over him, and Inuyasha looked up to see Kirara flying overhead. "Hey, Sango!" Inuyasha shouted. "Kirara! Down here!"

Kirara banked, and flew down to the forest floor. Sango's face filled with relief when she saw Inuyasha. "Thank goodness, you're alright! How'd you get away from that dragon?"

"I didn't really escape," Inuyasha admitted. "Jaken said he and the dragon weren't supposed to kill me, just get me away from the fight so I couldn't interfere."

"Jaken?" Sango asked.

"Sesshomaru's toad lackey," Inuyasha clarified. He climbed up behind Sango. "Let's go. We need to get back there fast; Kagome isn't going to properly fight Sesshomaru."

Kirara took off again. "Are you sure she won't fight him?" Sango asked.

"She considers him family," Inuyasha said. Much the way Sango couldn't bring herself to seriously fight her father, even though he was being controlled by Naraku. Not that Inuyasha would say such a thing; it would have been too mean. But judging by the serious expression on her face, Sango had made the connection herself.

"You're right," she said. "We'd better hurry."

They hadn't flown long when a flash of red from below caught their attention. "It's Kagome," Sango said. "The fight must be over already."

 _Does this mean that Kagome won? Did she actually fight back against Sesshomaru?_

He was eager to hear what had happened, and impatient for Kirara to land. When she did, Inuyasha immediately jumped off of her back to face Kagome. The shocked expression on Kagome's face stopped Inuyasha's questions. _She looks like she's seen a ghost._

Then she threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly and burying her face in his shoulder with a sob.

 _What?_

Inuyasha was at a complete loss at this display of emotion, but he gingerly wrapped his arms around her to return the hug. "Kagome?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

She said something, but her voice was too muffled for him to understand what it was. Then Totosai, Miroku, and Shippo arrived, flying on the back of Totosai's cow. "Inuyasha, you're alive!" Shippo cried out, jumping onto the shoulder that Kagome wasn't crying on.

"Of course I'm alive," Inuyasha said. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Sesshomaru told us he had ordered his dragon to kill you," Miroku replied.

Suddenly Kagome's distress made much more sense. Inuyasha's hug tightened around her. "It's okay, Kagome. I'm fine. Sesshomaru lied, I'm not hurt at all."

She finally raised her head, smiling weakly at him though there were still tears shining in her golden eyes. "I'm just so relieved," Kagome said, and everything else seemed to fade away from Inuyasha's notice under the warmth of her gaze. She was so stunningly beautiful, Inuyasha couldn't resist reaching up with one hand to brush the tear tracks from her face, marveling at the softness of her skin as he did so.

"Well, I suppose one good thing came out of it," Totosai said. His voice shattered the moment, forcefully reminding Inuyasha of the fact that they had an audience. Heat suffused his face and he took a hasty step away from Kagome, who was also blushing furiously. Inuyasha glanced away, too embarrassed to look at Kagome, only to see Miroku smirking with amusement, and Sango blushing from having seen such an intimate moment. He didn't care to look up at Shippo and see his expression. Totosai continued on, as though oblivious to what had just happened. "Kagome was so determined to avenge you and protect the others she managed to use the wind scar!"

It took a moment for the meaning of Totosai's words to penetrate Inuyasha's haze of embarrassment. "What, seriously?" he asked.

"Indeed she did," Myoga said from his position on top of the cow's head. "She used the wind scar against Sesshomaru and injured him badly. I don't think we'll have to worry about running into him again for a while."

Inuyasha was amazed to hear that. Not that she'd mastered the wind scar, he'd always been sure that she could master the Tetsusaiga completely. But that she'd actually been willing to turn it on Sesshomaru, who she'd never been willing to fight before…

 _And she did it because of me, because she'd thought he killed me._

Inuyasha looked over at Kagome, who wouldn't quite meet his gaze. Just maybe, he realized, maybe he was more important to her than he'd ever thought before.

"Perhaps we should call an early end to our day," Miroku said. "Kagome, do we need to do anything for your injuries?"

"Injuries?" Inuyasha asked. "You're hurt?"

"They aren't that bad," Kagome said, lifting her right hand as she spoke. The sleeve fell down a little ways, allowing Inuyasha to see the raw, angry looking burn on Kagome's wrist. "This is the worst of them. They'll heal fine on their own, but I wouldn't object to some water to soak them in."

"I noticed a river when we were flying," Sango said. "We can head over there."

"Are you going to be staying with us?" Miroku asked Totosai.

The old demon scratched his head as he replied. "Well, I suppose I can help you get over to the river, but then I'd better get on home since Sesshomaru isn't going to be trying to kill me anymore."

Sango and Kagome rode on Kirara, while Inuyasha, Shippo, and Miroku loaded up on the demon cow with Totosai. "Here you go, Inuyasha," Miroku said, handing over Inuyasha's staff.

"Thanks," Inuyasha said. He was glad to have the weapon back.

Once they were in the air, Miroku added, "I would ask if you were going to confess your feelings to Kagome, but I suppose that would be rather redundant at this point."

Inuyasha flushed with embarrassment and spluttered, unable to think of a coherent response to Miroku's words.

"Eh?" Totosai said. "What's that? Inuyasha has feelings for Kagome?"

"How could you not notice?" Shippo asked. "He's really obvious about it."

"Could we not have this conversation?" Inuyasha managed to say.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, Inuyasha," Miroku said. "Young love is a wonderful thing!"

"I am not in l-love with her!" Inuyasha said, stammering over the word. "I like her, but that's going too far!"

"Frightened by the intensity of his own feelings," Shippo sighed, patting Inuyasha's arm. "What a shame."

"That's no good," Myoga said. Inuyasha hadn't realized that the flea demon was still with them. "You'll never win over someone as strong as Kagome by being timid. You must boldly declare your feelings!"

"I'm going to kill all of you," Inuyasha said through gritted teeth.

When they landed by the river, Inuyasha quickly hopped off the cow to avoid any more teasing by the others.

"Well, I'm off then," Totosai said.

"I will be joining Totosai for a while," Myoga added.

"Goodbye," Kagome said. "And thank you, Totosai, for all your help."

The old demon waved, and soon both he and his cow were out of sight. They went ahead and set up camp for the afternoon, while Kagome sat on the river bank, soaking one of her feet and her wrist. Inuyasha couldn't help but keep glancing over at her every so often. He knew she'd had worse injuries than the ones she sported now and that they would probably soon be healed, but he couldn't help but be concerned. He kind of wanted to go check on her, but didn't dare after the teasing that the guys had given him.

"Miroku, let's go gather firewood," Sango said suddenly.

"Well, if you insist," Miroku said.

"I'll go too!" Shippo chimed in. "Someone has to be there to keep an eye on Miroku."

Without further ado, they scurried off, Kirara with them, so it was only Inuyasha and Kagome left in their camp.

"Well that was sudden," Kagome said.

"Yeah, it was," Inuyasha said, eyeing the tree line suspiciously to see if they were actually gone or spying on them to see what would happen. He had a feeling their sudden desire to all go gathering firewood was to give him a chance to talk to Kagome privately. He kind of appreciated that thoughtfulness.

 _Of course, it means if I confess and she shoots me down, they're all going to know._

Actually, considering what had happened earlier, they'd probably all be able to figure it out if Kagome rejected him, no matter when he confessed. _Then I'd better go ahead and do this, before I lose my nerve._

He walked over and sat on the riverbank beside her, trying to figure out how to open up the conversation. Kagome straightened when he sat beside her, pulling her wrist out of the water. Inuyasha winced at the sight of the injury. "That looks bad," he said, and then wanted to kick himself. He hadn't meant to say that out loud.

Kagome studied her wrist. "It doesn't hurt as bad as it looks," she said. "But it's close. Sesshomaru's poison is nasty." She glanced guiltily at the water. "I hope I'm not poisoning the fish by rinsing off here."

 _Well this is a great lead in to a romantic conversation,_ Inuyasha thought sarcastically. While he struggled to figure out a way to turn the conversation in the direction he wanted it to go, Kagome spoke again.

"You were right," she said softly.

"Huh?" Inuyasha asked.

"About Sesshomaru, I mean," Kagome said. "When he said you were dead…he was smiling. Like he thought it was funny. He's…he's _not_ a good person. And I don't think he's ever going to love me, even if I used to the Shikon Jewel to become a full demon." Her voice broke, and Inuyasha saw tears shining in Kagome's eyes.

Inuyasha reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry," Inuyasha said. "I wish I hadn't been right about him. For what it's worth, he's the one missing out, because you're the most amazing person I know."

Her cheeks flushed and she smiled at him. "Thanks, Inuyasha. That's sweet."

Kagome's smile was his undoing, and Inuyasha blurted out, "I like you."

Kagome blinked with surprise. "What?"

Inuyasha tightened his grip on her shoulder and bulled ahead, now that he'd gone and said it. "I like you," he repeated. "I mean a lot. Will you date me?"

It was hard to breathe while he waited for her answer. After waiting for what seemed like forever, Kagome said, "What's dating?"

Inuyasha deflated, his hand slipping from her shoulder and into his lap. "Right. You wouldn't know that word; people didn't really date in this era. Um, I guess it's like courting, sort of. Except, you know, marriage isn't as guaranteed to happen at the end. It's a little more casual, I guess?"

"I think I get the idea," Kagome said, the blush on her face darkening, and Inuyasha really hoped that was a good blush showing she was flattered by his request, not a bad blush meaning that she was embarrassed because she was going to turn him down and wasn't sure how to do it without hurting his feelings. She glanced down, and Inuyasha waited for her response. Glancing back up and him, she smiled and said, "Okay."

"Really?" Inuyasha asked, almost unable to believe his ears.

"Really," she confirmed.

Inuyasha could feel his mouth stretching into what was probably a ridiculous grin, but he didn't even care. _She said yes!_

There was an excited whoop from the woods, Shippo dashed over to them, jumping onto Inuyasha. "She said yes!" he cried, echoing Inuyasha's thoughts completely. Shippo was followed at a slightly more leisurely pace by an amused looking Miroku and a sheepish Sango, none of whom had firewood.

"Were you guys eavesdropping?" Kagome demanded.

"Just a little," Miroku said. Normally Inuyasha would have been upset by this, but right now? Nothing could bring him down.

 _She said yes!_


	11. Chapter 11

Enter the Wolf Demon

Thanks to Sesshomaru's stupid kidnapping stunt, they were several miles out of their way for traveling to the mountain that Sango had seen Naraku at. After some discussion, they once again decided that Miroku, Sango, and Shippo would fly on Kirara for the morning, while Inuyasha would stick with Kagome. It was the first time Inuyasha was actually pleased with the prospect of being carried by her. Now that he knew she returned his feelings, the closeness no longer seemed awkward to him.

But they hadn't been traveling more than an hour when Inuyasha sensed a faint glimmer of a jewel shard. Kagome must have felt his body tense, because she asked, "What's wrong, Inuyasha?"

"I sense a jewel shard," Inuyasha said. "It's pretty faint, but definitely there."

Kagome stopped running, letting Inuyasha slip off her back so she could wave down the others. When Kirara landed, Kagome said, "Inuyasha senses a jewel shard. We're going to have to change course."

Sango nodded. "We're following you then."

They all took off again in the direction Inuyasha had indicated. After they had traveled for a few minutes, Inuyasha frowned. "Something's weird," he said.

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked.

"Well, we've traveled closer to the shard, but it doesn't really feel any closer," Inuyasha said.

"Whoever has it must be on the move then," Kagome said.

"I guess so," Inuyasha said.

They travelled on, and this time it was Kagome who stiffened, coming to a halt. "What's wrong?" Inuyasha asked.

She didn't answer immediately, but waited until Sango had brought Kirara down for a landing. "I smell blood," Kagome told them. "And lots of it. I think we're going to be walking into something bad up here."

"I'll fly on ahead with Kirara then, and scout out the area," Sango said.

Miroku and Shippo slid off of Kirara. She took off, and was soon out of sight. The rest of them decided to continue walking on, as their much slower pace shouldn't allow them to walk into any kind of danger before Sango returned.

Kagome sniffed the air again, her frown deepening. "I smell wolves," she said.

Inuyasha felt Shippo shiver from his usual position on the teen's shoulder. Inuyasha reached up and patted him for comfort. It didn't surprise Inuyasha that the mention of wolves might frighten Shippo. While Inuyasha hadn't seen much of Rouyakan's wolves in their fight against him, Shippo had. It was bound to have left some bad memories.

"Regular wolves, or demon wolves?" Inuyasha asked.

"Demon," Kagome said.

Sango returned, and her expression was grim. "It's a village," she told them. "They were wiped out by a pack of wolf demons."

"Are they still there?" Miroku asked.

"They are, and probably will be for a while," Sango said. "They're feeding."

It took Inuyasha a moment to register what Sango meant by feeding, and it was with a wave of horror that understanding came.

"We'd better pick up the pace then, and see if we can find anyone who's still alive," Miroku said.

 _Please let there be someone left alive,_ Inuyasha thought, as they followed Miroku's suggestion of picking up the pace. He suppressed a shiver, imagining the fate of the people who'd been slaughtered by the wolves, how terrifying such a death would be.

But his imaginings didn't prepare him at all for what he saw when they finally arrived at the village. Bodies of men, women, and children lay where they had fallen in pools of blood, their stomachs ripped open to give the wolves easier access to the internal organs. Most of the wolves were busy gorging themselves on their meal, muzzles and paws covered in blood, their teeth ripping out chunks of flesh.

Inuyasha's stomach heaved, and it took every ounce of self-control he had not to throw up right then and there. He might not have managed the feat at all, if he hadn't been so aware of the current danger they faced.

Kagome drew her sword and rushed forward, slaying the nearest three wolves before they'd even noticed the group's presence. The remaining wolves immediately quit eating to form a rough semicircle in front of them.

Kagome brandished her sword at them. "Come on, then! Let's see how you deal with someone who can actually fight back!"

Two of the wolves seemed to take up her challenge, charging at Kagome from opposite sides so she wouldn't be able to get both of them. "On your left!" Sango shouted, throwing her hiraikotsu at the wolf charging from Kagome's left side, leaving Kagome free to whirl around and cut down the wolf that was charging from her right.

"Inuyasha, which one has the jewel shard?" Miroku asked.

Inuyasha focused on the wolves, trying to ignore their bloody teeth and muzzles in favor of looking for the small, pink light that would indicate the presence of a jewel shard. "None of them," he said through gritted teeth. He didn't want to open his mouth completely to talk, or else he might not be able to stop himself from being sick.

"Then their leader isn't here," Sango said.

"I'll finish these wolves quick then, so we can find him," Kagome called over her shoulder.

The wolves seemed to understand Kagome's words. Most of them rushed her, but several darted farther away started howling. "What are they doing?" Shippo asked.

Sango heaved her hiraikotsu at them, but the wolves seemed to have been expecting that and managed to dodge the throw. "They're calling their leader back!" Sango said.

Inuyasha could sense the presence of the jewel shards drawing closer at an alarming speed, while the wolves that had attacked Kagome suddenly broke away, retreating to a safe distance with the wolves that had set up the howling. Inuyasha didn't even have time to ask Kagome if she was alright before a miniature tornado blew into the village, kicking up dust and debris.

The winds settled, and standing where the tornado had been was a person that at first glance appeared to be a young man in armor and a furry kilt. But the presence that blazed in Inuyasha's senses most definitely wasn't human, and a second glance revealed that the young man had pointed, elflike ears and a wolf tail.

The wolves rushed to him, and for a second Inuyasha thought they were going to attack him, but they didn't. Instead, they gathered around him, whining. The demon glanced down at them for a moment, and then his blue eyes snapped back up to glare at Kagome. His lips curled back in a snarl. "How dare you slaughter my wolves?" he demanded.

"Your wolves just slaughtered an entire village," Kagome snapped back. "I don't think you have any room to complain."

"So what?" the wolf demon said. "They were hungry; they needed to eat."

Inuyasha was chilled. He had never imagined that someone could be so nonchalant about mass murder. _How can he not care that he's caused the death of so many people?_

"You should have fed them something else," Kagome replied. She shifted her stance slightly, and Inuyasha realized she was about to attack. Before Inuyasha could call out a warning, she lunged at the wolf demon, swinging the Tetsusaiga in an attack that should have taken him through the heart. But with a movement that was almost too fast to follow, the wolf demon dodged the swing with a jump, somehow managing to land on the blunt edge of Tetsusaiga's blade.

The wolf demon smirked down at her. "Too slow!" With another movement that was so fast Inuyasha couldn't really follow it, he somehow managed to hit Kagome, sending her crashing through the wall of a hut.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried out, his heart in his throat.

"It'll take more than a half breed mutt like you to beat me," the wolf demon said, an arrogant smirk lighting his face.

Inuyasha's temper flared, and he could feel his own power surging in response to it. If only he could get his hands on that arrogant bastard, he'd purify him out of existence! But Inuyasha knew just from this short exchange of blows he'd never manage to get close to him. Kagome was the only one who stood a chance against this wolf demon.

Rubble stirred, and Kagome stepped out of the hole in the wall. To Inuyasha's relief, she didn't seem hurt, just angry. "This half breed mutt is going to take you down!" she snarled.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted again to get her attention. She needed to know about the demon's jewel shards! Kagome didn't take her eyes off of her opponent, but an ear twitched in his direction, so Inuyasha knew he had her attention. "He's got three jewel shards! One in his right arm, and one in each leg!"

The demon's gaze snapped over to Inuyasha, his blue eyes wide with surprise. Inuyasha just glared back at him.

"Well, that explains his speed," Sango said grimly.

"Then there's no more time to waste," Kagome said. She held Tetsusaiga's hilt with both hands, and Inuyasha felt a surge of power around her, like he had at Mushin's temple when she'd killed the mass of demons with one swing. Remembering what Totosai had told them the day before, Inuyasha realized what she was doing.

 _She's going to use the wind scar!_

The wolf demon tensed and jumped back. "Retreat!" he shouted to the wolves. They immediately melted away into the distance, and their leader disappeared with them. The retreat was so sudden that for a moment all Inuyasha could do was stare.

"What just happened?" Shippo asked.

Miroku stepped forward. "Kagome, you were about to use the wind scar, correct?"

"Yeah," Kagome said, staring in the direction the wolves had disappeared in. "I thought since he had three jewel shards, it would be the best way to end the fight quickly."

"I think he may have sensed the attack, and decided to run away rather than face it," Miroku said.

"Then he isn't just strong," Sango said. "He's clever. That makes our job harder."

"So it does," Miroku said. "But before we track him down, we'd best tend to this village. If we don't, we could end up leaving behind angry ghosts."

Miroku's words made Inuyasha remember the surrounding carnage, which Kagome's danger had momentarily helped him to ignore. Now that the immediate danger was gone, all his focus turned toward the mutilated corpses that were all that was left of the villagers.

Bile rose in his throat, and this time there was no threat of danger to help him keep it down. He whirled about, but only managed a few steps away before he had to lean over and throw up. "Inuyasha!" He could feel Shippo clinging to his shoulders, but he didn't have time to answer him before another wave of nausea hit and his stomach heaved again.

When his stomach was finally empty, Inuyasha noticed the others had moved closer to him in concern. "Oh, Inuyasha," Kagome said, reaching out to touch his arm. "I'm sorry. I forgot you haven't seen things like this before."

"You guys have?" Inuyasha asked, wiping his mouth. Miroku held out a bottle of water for him, which Inuyasha gratefully accepted.

"It is an unfortunately common occurrence in these times," Miroku said. "Villages get wiped out, and not always by demons."

Unfortunate, he called it. This was so much worse than merely _unfortunate_ , but looking at their faces, all Inuyasha could see was a mild sadness and concern, and those emotions were not even directed toward the villagers and what had happened to them. All their sadness and concern was for Inuyasha, for the distress that he was feeling.

 _This is so messed up._

His friends were good people. They were compassionate people. If people as good and compassionate as they were could look at the slaughter of an entire village of people and call it merely _unfortunate,_ then something was very wrong.

 _This is why people are afraid of Kagome._

Kagome didn't go around killing people, and she certainly never ate them. But other demons did. Other demons killed and ate whole villages of people and everyone knew it happened. So when other people saw Kagome they didn't just see a stranger. They saw someone who might be thinking about eating them and their family. Viewed in that light, the hatred that humans in the Feudal Era seemed to feel for demons and half demons kind of started to make sense.

"I'm okay," Inuyasha said, standing up. It was a lie, and they probably knew it. But they were kind enough not to call him on it.

"Inuyasha, you and I can dig graves," Sango said. "Miroku, Kagome, see if you two can find us some shovels. Come on, Inuyasha, let's find a spot."

Inuyasha followed her, and he was grateful that she led him around the edge of the village rather than through it, as it allowed him to keep his eyes averted from the carnage. They kept going until they came to a decently sized field. "This looks like a good spot," Sango said.

It wasn't long at all before Kagome and Miroku appeared with shovels for them. Taking the shovels, Sango demonstrated with marks on the ground how long and wide the graves needed to be, and then they set to work. Digging the graves was hot, back breaking work, and Inuyasha was grateful for that. It was strenuous enough that it let him not think about the slaughtered villagers, or about how Miroku and Kagome had the task of gathering those bodies for burial. Neither Sango nor Shippo tried to engage him in conversation, another thing for which he was grateful. He could simply lose himself in the repetitive movements of digging.

"Inuyasha."

Inuyasha blinked sweat out of his eyes, looking up to see Kagome standing by the grave he was digging. He wasn't sure how long he'd been at work, but it must have been for some time, as he and Sango had managed a decently long line of graves.

"You need to take a break," Kagome said. Sango was taking a break already, sitting several feet away and sipping on water.

"I'd rather keep working," Inuyasha said. If he took a break, he wouldn't be able to help but notice the blanket wrapped bodies that Kagome and Miroku had gathered and laid out nearby, waiting to be buried.

"You need a break," she repeated. "You've already hurt your hands."

She was right. His hands were blistered and sore, and his back ached from the effort of his labor. But he still didn't want to stop. If he stopped, he'd have to think.

"I'm fine," Inuyasha said.

Kagome's frown deepened. "I'll tell Sensei you caused yourself injury through carelessness."

Inuyasha winced, knowing exactly how poorly Sensei would react to being told something like that. "Fine. You win."

She held out a hand, and Inuyasha took it, allowing her to help pull him out of the grave he'd been digging. Once he was out, she didn't let go of his hand but started walking, pulling him along with her. "Come on," she said. "We need to take care of your hands."

It took Inuyasha a minute to realize she was leading him to a nearby hut, but when he did his steps came to a halt. Kagome looked back at him, her expression gentle, and said, "It's okay, Inuyasha. No one died in there. I wouldn't do that to you."

Reluctantly, Inuyasha let her lead him inside. Someone, probably Shippo, had already stored their things inside this hut, and had a fire going.

"Sit," Kagome ordered, pointing to a spot near the fire. Inuyasha obeyed, watching her while she gathered together a bowl of water and some clean rags. She sat down in front of him, setting the bowl between them. "Show me your hands."

Inuyasha held them out for her. They really did look a mess. Some of the blisters had even torn open, leaving his hands stinging. Kagome dipped a rag in the bowl of water and gently wiped at his palms, cleaning away the dirt that had gathered on them. It was kind of amazing that hands as strong as Inuyasha knew hers to be could also be so incredibly gentle.

"I'm sorry," Kagome said after a few minutes of silence. "About all of this."

"It's not your fault," Inuyasha said. It was the fault of that wolf demon.

"I know," Kagome said. "But I'm still sorry. I wish you didn't have to know that situations like this exist."

Inuyasha suddenly realized that to Kagome, he must seem incredibly innocent and naive. He'd never thought of himself that way. After all, he'd known that terrible things happened to people, even in his time. But it was one thing to hear on the news that a town had been destroyed somewhere on the other side of the world in a country he barely knew existed. It was something else entirely to see that carnage up close and personal, and to know that it was a common occurrence.

"We're going to stop him, Inuyasha," Kagome said. "I promise. We're going to take his jewel shards, and we're going to make sure that wolf demon never hurts anyone again."

Her face was in an expression of fierce determination, and Inuyasha felt a swell of emotion that was too tangled and overwhelming for him to put a name to. He leaned forward, resting his forehead against Kagome's. "You are a wonderful person," he said softly. "Have I told you that lately?"

Kagome blushed. "Um, yes, yesterday," she stammered.

"Then it's been too long," Inuyasha said. His hands curled around Kagome's, cradling them gently. "You're wonderful."

"Hey, Inuyasha—oh!"

Shippo's voice cut through the moment, startling them both. Kagome jerked back from Inuyasha, her whole face nearly as red her clothes. Inuyasha glared at Shippo, who stood in the doorway sheepishly.

"Sorry for interrupting," Shippo said. "Miroku wanted to know if we needed to gather any firewood for lunch."

Inuyasha glanced at the small pile of firewood stashed near the doorway of the hut. "I think we're good," he said.

"I'll go tell Miroku and Sango then," Shippo said before dashing off.

"I'd better start getting the food prepared then," Kagome said standing up.

"I'll help," Inuyasha said, but Kagome shook her head.

"You stay there," she told him. "Give your hands a rest."

So Inuyasha leaned back against a wall, and a few moments later the others entered. Sango went to help Kagome with preparing their meal while Miroku settled down beside Inuyasha. Shippo claimed his spot in Inuyasha's lap.

"Inuyasha, do you know how to perform rites for the deceased?" Miroku asked.

Inuyasha shook his head. "No, I never learned that."

"Then I'll have to teach you," Miroku said. "It'll go faster tonight if both of us are doing the work."

It was a depressing lesson, and Inuyasha struggled to pay attention to Miroku's words rather than lingering on mental images of the people they would be performing those rites for. It wasn't easy, and Inuyasha was relieved when the girls had finished preparing lunch and the lesson was put on hold for the meal.

Once they finished eating, Inuyasha and Shippo were given the assignment of cleaning up after the meal while the others went back to the grisly task of digging graves and gathering bodies for burial. Inuyasha knew the others were trying to shelter him as much as they could from it all, and he didn't resent the coddling. Nor did he mind when Shippo dragged the cleaning out longer than necessary, chattering away about nothing in particular.

But eventually they did finish their tasks, and Inuyasha went outside to see if there was anything else they needed him to do. He saw that the others had finished gathering the bodies, and Sango and Miroku were lowering the blanket wrapped bodies into the graves while Kagome filled in the graves.

Even though the bodies were wrapped securely, Inuyasha couldn't help but cringe at the sight of them, especially the small figures of children. The only comfort he could call on was Kagome's promise that they would stop the wolf demon, but it was small comfort when stopping the wolf demon now wouldn't bring any of these people back to life.

 _I wonder if Sesshomaru could save them?_

Totosai had told them that Sesshomaru's sword Tenseiga had the ability to heal people, even to the point of bringing them back from the dead. With just one swing, it could save the lives of a hundred people. But Inuyasha doubted there was any chance that Sesshomaru would ever use the Tenseiga to save someone, especially if the user had to be kindhearted.

 _What wouldn't I give for a sword like that right now?_

Wishing did no good though. He felt Shippo hop up onto his shoulder. "Are you okay, Inuyasha?" he asked.

Inuyasha reached up and patted Shippo's head. "I'm fine, Shippo."

A lie. But he supposed it would be true eventually. He walked toward the others. "What can I do to help?" he asked.

Miroku nodded toward the first grave, which Kagome had finished filling in. "Go ahead and start the rites."

Inuyasha walked over to the grave. Bowing his head, he began the prayer that Miroku had taught him, to calm the person's soul and help them move on to the afterlife.

The work of burying the villagers took the rest of the afternoon. By the time they finished the task, the sun was setting and everyone was tired from their work. Their exhaustion made dinner a quiet affair, and soon after the meal was complete everyone turned in for the night.

As Shippo snuggled into Inuyasha's side like usual, the teen realized that this might be the first time he was genuinely glad that Shippo liked to sleep cuddled up to him. After seeing so much death that day, it was a great comfort to have the reassurance that there was someone living next to him. Reveling in that comfort, Inuyasha drifted off to sleep.

* * *

With a gasp, Inuyasha jerked out of his nightmare, images of wolves snapping at him still dancing through his brain. _Should've expected nightmares after yesterday._

The confines of the hut felt stifling after his dream, so Inuyasha slipped out of his sleeping bag, careful not to jar Shippo awake. Then he slipped outside, and leaning back against the wall of the hut, he breathed deeply of the early morning air. To the east, the sky was fading from black to gray, which meant the sun would be coming up soon. Then the others would wake, and then they'd be off after that wolf demon.

"Inuyasha?"

He looked up to see Kagome sitting on the edge of the roof, looking down at him. "Hi," he said.

"Did you have a nightmare?" she asked.

It was on the tip of his tongue to deny it, when he realized that with her hearing she'd probably heard his gasping when he'd woken up. "Yeah," he admitted.

She was quiet a moment and then said, "You had nightmares after Enju too."

"You knew about that?" Inuyasha asked.

"I was awake," Kagome said. "I heard you wake up then, too. Do fights always give you nightmares?"

"Not always," Inuyasha said. "Just when they're really bad. Like this." Inuyasha looked up at the sky instead of at Kagome. It was embarrassing to admit this weakness to her. "I bet you never have nightmares."

"Not about fights," Kagome said. "But I think everyone has nightmares, sometimes."

"I guess so," Inuyasha said. They fell into silence after that. Inuyasha straightened from where he was leaning against the hut and started to go into his stretches.

"Should you really be practicing right now?" Kagome asked.

"I'm not practicing," Inuyasha replied. "Just stretching. I'm sore from the digging yesterday, and stretching helps."

"Oh," Kagome said. Soreness was probably something Kagome didn't have to worry about much, given how quickly she healed.

By the time Inuyasha had finished his stretches, the sun was rising and he could hear the other beginning to stir in the hut.

Kagome hopped off the roof. "I'd better help Sango with breakfast." As she ducked inside the hut, Miroku came out holding a bucket in each hand.

"Sango is sending us for water," he said cheerfully, holding one out for Inuyasha to take.

Inuyasha took the bucket from him, and together they walked down to the river. Carrying the bucket while it was empty wasn't a big deal, though once it had been filled with water Inuyasha winced at the pressure it placed on his blisters. "Hands sore?" Miroku asked.

"A bit," Inuyasha admitted. "I probably shouldn't practice with my staff for a day or two to give the blisters a chance to heal."

Miroku nodded. "Probably."

They carried the water back to the hut, and soon breakfast had been cooked and eaten, and all their things repacked. "Inuyasha, can you sense the jewel shards that wolf demon had?" Kagome asked.

Inuyasha shook his head. "No. Wherever he went, he's too far away for me to sense the shards."

"In that case, I'll have to track them down by scent," Kagome said.

This was easier said than done. Kagome was able to find their trail to follow, but it led farther away from the village than anyone had expected. After several hours of travel, they found themselves in a mountainous region. The mountains were cut through with deep valleys and gorges, giving the whole area a labyrinth like feel.

"It's like a maze," Inuyasha complained.

"It's a good thing we have Kagome," Sango said. "At least she can follow their scents."

"For now," Kagome said. "If this is their territory, their scents could be all over the place. That'll make tracking them much harder. We may end up needing you and Kirara to scout for us."

"We can do that," Sango said, nodding. "Just let us know if you need us."

The trail led them down into a gorge, and it was a good thing that Inuyasha wasn't afraid of heights, because the path they were on dropped off sharply with more than a hundred foot fall. There was a wide river at the bottom of the gorge, but Inuyasha doubted that would make much of a difference in the landing.

Suddenly, Inuyasha sensed the presence of demons above them, and his head snapped up to see a group of demon wolves rushing down the steep cliff side toward them. "Look out!" he shouted, but before anyone had any time to react, the wolves slammed into Kagome, knocking her off the side of the path.

They rushed to the edge and saw the wolves were clamped down on her arms and legs as they plummeted toward the river. Then the presence of jewel shards flared into Inuyasha's awareness, and a small, swirling funnel like the one the wolf demon had appeared out of the day before was rocketing toward them up the side of the cliff wall.

 _Ambush!_

Inuyasha barely had time for the thought when something slammed into his stomach nearly hard enough to wind him. Wind rushed about him, and Inuyasha realized it wasn't quite an ambush, or at least not an ambush for fighting. It was a kidnapping.

"What are you doing?" Inuyasha shouted furiously at the wolf demon whose shoulder he was currently tossed over.

The wolf demon laughed. "Isn't it obvious?"

Before Inuyasha could spit out an angry retort at him the wolf demon jumped off the path aiming for the other side of the gorge. The distance was great enough that Inuyasha was sure even Kagome couldn't have made it in one jump. His heart leaped to his throat, and Inuyasha was sure they were going to fall to their deaths or at the very least _his_ death.

Then with a jolt that jabbed the demon's shoulder painfully into Inuyasha's stomach they hit the other cliff face, the demon's feet and one hand digging furrows into the rock and bringing them to a halt hanging of the side of the cliff.

"You're insane," Inuyasha managed to say.

"Please, this is nothing for me," the demon responded flippantly.

Inuyasha was in no mood to be impressed, least of all with this particular demon. "You don't get bragging rights when you're relying on jewel shards for power!"

The demon huffed and took off running again, going straight up the cliff. Inuyasha kept his mouth shut for fear of biting his tongue. _As soon as this guy stops running—and we're not hanging of the side of a cliff—I'm going to purify him to ash._

The run lasted longer than Inuyasha would have liked. Traveling tossed over someone's shoulder was absolutely not comfortable. In fact, the position felt rather precarious, and despite himself Inuyasha ended up hanging onto the wolf demon so he wouldn't accidentally fall off. If he fell going at this speed, it'd be a miracle if he didn't die.

But finally the wolf demon did come to a stop, shrugging Inuyasha off his perch with an abruptness that caused him to stumble before he found his footing. Inuyasha blinked and looked around. The scenery was rather picturesque, with a waterfall tumbling down the cliff and feeding into a pool that was surrounded by greenery. But it wasn't the pretty scenery that held Inuyasha's attention. It was the fact that they were surrounded by wolf demons, and not just the four legged kind either.

Inuyasha had assumed that the four legged wolf demons that had attacked the village were the entirety of the wolf demon's pack. That assumption had been very, very wrong.

 _Crap._

* * *

 **AN:** For anyone wondering, yes, this is also when Sesshomaru meets Rin, and in this AU he does meet her. I didn't write them meeting because it would have played out basically the same way as it did in the show, so there really wasn't a point. Hope you'll enjoy the wolf tribe arc; I can promise things are going to play out very differently for everyone.


	12. Chapter 12

The Wolf Tribe

"Hey, Koga, you're back!" a voice called out in greeting. Inuyasha realized that must be the name of his captor.

"And you brought dinner!" someone else said.

The hair on the back of Inuyasha's neck stood up at those words. He had no doubt what dinner was supposed to be. He knew that he couldn't take out the whole tribe by himself, especially unarmed as he'd dropped his staff when Koga had nabbed him, but he'd surely purify as many as he could before they killed him.

But to his surprise, Koga shoved himself between Inuyasha and the crowd, snarling, "Back off! This human isn't for eating! I'll kill anyone who lays a hand on him!"

The demons backed off, clearly feeling Koga was entirely capable of carrying out his threat. "But Koga," someone asked, "he's a human. If he isn't for eating, what's he here for?"

Inuyasha had to wonder the same thing. Not that he wasn't relieved that Koga didn't intend to eat him, but he had no idea why else Koga would have bothered with bringing him here. Maybe he planned to hold Inuyasha hostage so he could have an advantage in a fight with Kagome?

The wolf demon looked back at him with a confident smirk that immediately grated on Inuyasha's nerves. "He's going to help us."

Inuyasha's jaw dropped at the unexpected words. " _What?_ Why would I help you with anything?"

He wasn't the only one with a protest. A wolf demon with an eye catching mohawk stepped forward. "Koga, he's human. What could a human possibly do for us?"

"He's a human that can see jewel shards," Koga said. That caused a change in the demeanor of the assembled wolf demons. Their expressions went from confused to eager. Some even very nearly looked hopeful.

"What's that got to do with anything?" Inuyasha demanded.

Before Koga could answer, shouting started up. "Healer! We need Yasu! We've got injured!" Koga dashed forward, almost knocking Inuyasha over as he went past.

Inuyasha glared after him, but his temper faltered as he registered who was approaching. There were four more wolf demons coming, carrying two stretchers between them. Other wolf demons surged forward, relieving the carriers of their burdens and rushing them away quicker. Inuyasha caught a glimpse of the two wolf demons on stretchers. It was a brief glimpse, but enough for him to realize they were badly injured. Then they were whisked past Inuyasha and disappeared behind the waterfall.

"What happened?" Koga demanded of the original carriers.

"Birds of Paradise," one of them said. "The hunting party must have run into some of the birds while they were out. Those two were the only ones that made it back to our borders."

Koga growled. He pointed at four different wolf demons and snapped, "You four, take over their guard duty for now."

The four indicated obeyed immediately, dashing off. Koga turned and marched toward the waterfall. As he passed Inuyasha, Koga reached out and snagged the back of his shirt, pulling him along. "Hey!" Inuyasha said, protesting the treatment. Koga ignored his protest and kept going. They ducked behind the waterfall, which turned out to be hiding a cave far larger than Inuyasha would have expected.

In an alcove near the entrance of the cave the two injured wolves had been laid out. Another wolf demon tended to their injuries.

"Will they make it, Yasu?" Koga asked.

Yasu glanced up at him. "If they can hold on until morning they should make it, but it'll be a long recovery."

Inuyasha was surprised by the uncertain prognosis. After all, he'd seen Kagome shrug off so many bad injuries, and he would have expected full demons to have an even better ability to heal than she did. Then he focused on the injured wolves and realized for the first time just how bad their injuries were. The multiple, deep gashes brought back to mind images of the slaughtered villagers, and Inuyasha had to fight being sick. Throwing up in front of his friends was bad enough; he was absolutely not going to do that here.

Koga swore under his breath and looking over at him Inuyasha realized that Koga was deeply upset by this event. It kind of surprised Inuyasha that Koga was upset given how callous Koga had been toward the destruction of the human village.

 _But I guess I shouldn't be surprised. Even terrible people can care about their friends. And even though he didn't care about the humans that died, Koga was upset about the wolves that Kagome killed._

Inuyasha was distracted from his thoughts as a sudden wailing went up around the cave. Looking around, Inuyasha saw it was several female wolf demons, as well as one or two males that were crying and shouting out, their expressions twisted with grief.

"Guess they found out who didn't make it back," Koga said. Inuyasha barely heard the words over the cries of the other wolf demons, and he wasn't sure they were actually directed at him. "Ginta, Hakkaku," Koga snapped. Two wolf demons immediately jumped forward, one of them the guy with the mohawk, and the other one a wolf demon that Inuyasha hadn't really noticed until this point. "You two keep an eye on the human while I deal with this."

"Yes, Koga," they chorused.

"My name is Inuyasha," he said. "So would you quit calling me 'the human'?"

Koga's tail flicked in Inuyasha's direction, and he really wasn't sure if that was supposed to be acknowledgement or some kind of rude wolf demon gesture. But Koga didn't respond verbally, merely plunged off into the crowd, leaving him with the two wolf demons.

"This way," said the wolf demon with the mohawk. The two led Inuyasha toward the back of the cave. As they walked, Inuyasha couldn't help but glance around. He saw that Koga was going among the grieving wolf demons, speaking to the families that included, Inuyasha noticed for the first time, children.

 _So that's what he considered more important than dealing with me, and whatever help I'm supposed to give them._ It bothered Inuyasha to realize that there was something he actually agreed with Koga about. _It doesn't matter. Koga caused the death of an entire village, and that probably wasn't his first time killing so many humans either. When Kagome and the others get here, we're going to stick to our plan and kill him so that he can't do that anymore._

But even as he thought it, Inuyasha suddenly realized that their plan wouldn't work, not now that he knew there were so many other members of the wolf tribe. Even if they did kill Koga, someone else would just take over as the tribe's leader, and they would continue to kill and eat humans. The only way they could stop the wolf tribe from eating people would be to wipe out the whole tribe. Between Miroku's wind tunnel and Kagome's wind scar, they might be able to manage it. But the idea of wiping out an entire tribe of people didn't sit well with Inuyasha, especially when he was listening to them cry and grieve over their own recent losses.

 _But what else can we do? Either we kill them, or they keep killing humans. There isn't another option._

The two wolf demons led Inuyasha down a short tunnel that branched off the main cave and ended in a smaller cave, about the size of Inuyasha's living room. It seemed to be an area where someone lived. Fur rugs covered the floor, and blankets were piled in one corner to form what was probably meant to be a bed. An old, worn looking trunk was shoved up against another wall. The area was lit with the soft pale light of glowing crystals scattered irregularly around the cave.

"Um, have a seat, I guess," said the wolf demon without a mohawk. His hair was cropped short and a steely gray color, though Inuyasha didn't think the color was any indication of the demon's age, as in appearance he didn't seem all that much older than Inuyasha himself. "I'm Ginta, by the way. That's Hakkaku."

The demon with the white mohawk nodded at him as he sat. Inuyasha sat down as well, figuring he might as well get what rest he could before Kagome and the others arrived to rescue him. However, it was impossible for Inuyasha to properly relax given his current situation. Even if he had been able to ignore the sounds of crying that still echoed through the tunnel, there was no way for him to ignore the way the presence of the wolf tribe pressed in on his senses. He'd gotten used to sensing his friends on their journey, but this was something else entirely.

An uncomfortable silence stretched out between the three of them. "Do either of you know what Koga wants my help with?" Inuyasha asked, as much to end the silence between them as to distract himself from the sounds of the grieving wolf demons.

"Well, not the particulars," Hakkaku said. "I mean, no one even knew he was going to bring you here."

"But, if you can see jewel shards, then we can make a guess," Ginta said. "You see, there's another tribe of demons that lives in this area, the Birds of Paradise. They've been our enemies for centuries. Sometimes they have the advantage, sometimes we do. Usually, we're basically at a stalemate."

"Once Koga took over as the leader of our tribe and got his three jewel shards, he was able to tip the scales in our favor," Hakkaku added in.

"Right," Ginta said, nodding. "But then one of the birds got its claws on a jewel shard too. Since then, things have gone the other way. They've been encroaching on our borders, and they've been attacking our hunting parties more and more. This time was lucky; usually if the birds attack a hunting party, no one comes back."

Hakkaku sighed. "At this rate, there's a good chance the Birds of Paradise will wipe us out, or force us to try and find a new home."

Inuyasha frowned. "But if Koga has three jewel shards, then shouldn't he be more powerful than the bird that just has one?"

"Probably," Ginta said. "The thing is, we don't know which Bird of Paradise has the jewel shard. We can't see the shards. So if we're attacked by a flock of birds, we don't know which one to focus on, or if any of them have it at all. Besides, even someone as fast as Koga can't be everywhere at once."

That information made Inuyasha's presence make more sense. Probably Koga wanted Inuyasha to figure out which if the Birds of Paradise had a jewel shard so they could kill that one and restore the balance of power, or even perhaps tip it in the wolf tribe's favor.

 _If the Birds of Paradise have been killing their hunting parties…I wonder if that's why Koga had his wolves eat that village?_

It didn't change the fact that Koga's actions had been horrible and wrong, and Inuyasha still didn't forgive him for it. But if the wolves were under threat of starvation, it made his actions just a bit more understandable.

Inuyasha was distracted from his contemplation when Koga himself entered the smaller cave. He didn't look to be in a good mood, but Inuyasha figured anyone who'd just had to try and comfort grieving families wouldn't be. "Let's get on with this," Koga said.

"You want my help against the Birds of Paradise," Inuyasha said. Koga looked surprised, and Inuyasha gestured toward Hakkaku and Ginta. "They filled me in a bit."

Koga settled down across from Inuyasha on the fur rug. "You're part right. I also want you to join our tribe."

Inuyasha wasn't sure who was more shocked by that declaration, him, Ginta, or Hakkaku. "Say _what?_ " he managed to get out. "Are you forgetting that I'm a _human_?"

"Of course not," Koga said. "But you can see the jewel shards, and that makes you more valuable than a dozen new wolf demons."

Inuyasha could think of a ton of reasons why joining a tribe of wolf demons was a really terrible idea, but he decided to go with the most obvious one. "You guys _eat humans_. Why would I want to join a tribe that thought I was supposed to be their dinner?"

Koga blinked, looking as though the thought hadn't occurred to him at all. "Huh, that's actually a good point."

 _He really didn't think about it!_

"In that case," Koga said, "if you join our tribe we'll just stop eating humans."

Inuyasha suddenly found it hard to breathe. He'd wanted to make sure that the wolf tribe stopped eating humans, but he'd had no clue how to go about it other than killing the whole tribe, and that was an option that had been less and less appealing the more he'd learned about them; the more they'd seemed like people, instead of just monsters. Now Koga had just casually handed him another option for saving people, an option that wouldn't cost anyone's life. All it would cost was…him.

Inuyasha answered before he even consciously realized he'd made up his mind. "Okay. If you agree to stop eating humans, I'll join your tribe."

"Deal," Koga said. He dashed over to the trunk against the far wall, his movements so fast as to be nothing more than a blur to Inuyasha's eyes, and dug out a cup and jar of some drink before dashing back.

"What's this for?" Inuyasha asked.

"For the adoption," Koga said. "You have to be joined into the tribe by a blood ceremony."

That sounded rather ominous.

Koga set the items on the floor, and holding his arm over the cup used one of his claws to cut his arm allowing several drops of blood to fall into the cup. "Arm," Koga ordered, holding out a hand for Inuyasha's arm.

 _Guess that's what he meant by blood ceremony._ Since it was only a few drops needed, Inuyasha held out his arm. The cut from Koga's claw stung, but it didn't hurt as badly as he'd expected. After several drops of his own blood had been added to the cup Koga released his arm and poured whatever drink was in the jug in the cup as well. Inuyasha wasn't sure what it was exactly, but judging by the smell it was alcoholic.

Koga swirled the contents of the cup to mix them. "With this mingling of blood, you become part of my family, and part of our tribe." So saying, Koga gulped down about half the cup in one go before handing it over to Inuyasha. Feeling rather like he was about to step off of a cliff, Inuyasha down the rest of the drink before he could talk himself out of it. He winced at the flavor; he couldn't taste the blood or anything, but the drink was far too bitter to be pleasant.

"That's done then," Koga said. "I'd better get busy getting everyone ready for the attack tomorrow."

"What attack tomorrow?" Inuyasha asked.

"Our attack on the Birds of Paradise," Koga said. "Now that you've joined us, there's no point in waiting." Koga stood as he spoke, but suddenly he swayed. "Whoa."

"Are you alright, Koga?" Ginta asked as he and Hakkaku hopped to their feet.

"I'm fine," Koga said. "Just dizzy for a second."

Inuyasha frowned, and then a sudden wave of dizziness hit him. He was glad he was sitting, because if he hadn't been he probably would have fallen over. As it was, he still had to brace himself with a hand on the ground. "I don't feel so good," he said.

No sooner had Inuyasha spoken then Koga crumpled. Ginta caught him with an alarmed cry. "Hakkaku, get Yasu!"

Another wave of dizziness hit Inuyasha and darkness swallowed him.

* * *

Kagome was furious. She was mostly furious with that wolf for stealing Inuyasha, but she was also furious with herself for not protecting him better. But Inuyasha being kidnapped had completely blindsided her. Kagome had expected herself to be the real target of any possible ambush, since she was the one who had fought the wolf demon before.

But Kagome hadn't been the target, and now Inuyasha was gone, and tracking him down was proving far more difficult than Kagome would have wished. The river the wolves had dumped her in had been swift, and it had swept her a ways downriver before she'd managed to get herself out. She probably could have gotten out sooner if Sango and Kirara had helped, but the two of them had attempted to follow Inuyasha and the wolf demon instead. Unfortunately, the wolf could run far faster than Kirara could manage to fly, and they had quickly lost sight of him.

Kagome was trying to track them by scent, but it wasn't easy. Since the wolf demon had carried Inuyasha off, Inuyasha's scent hadn't been left on anything for her to follow, and as they traveled deeper into the mountains the scent of wolf demons became more and more frequent, overlaying each other and making it hard for Kagome to pick out the scent of the one particular wolf demon she wanted to find and follow him.

 _Where did he take you, Inuyasha? And why?_

"Kagome, we have to stop," Sango said.

Kagome glared at her. "We can't stop! Inuyasha's life is in danger as long as he's with those wolves!"

"The sun is setting, and we're tired," Sango said. "If we go wandering about cliffs and mountains after dark, it's our lives that will be in danger. We won't do Inuyasha any good if we fall off a cliff and get ourselves injured or killed. We have to camp out for the night. As soon as the sun comes up in the morning, we'll start the search again."

Sango's arguments were reasonable, but Kagome was in no mood for reason. "But what if we wait until morning and it's too late!" Kagome snapped, voicing her biggest fear of all at the moment. They all knew the wolf demons ate humans without any qualms.

"I don't think Inuyasha is in danger of being killed by the wolf demons," Miroku said.

Kagome switched her glare to the monk. "You can't know that for sure."

"True," Miroku said. "But I've given it some thought, and I'm reasonably certain I'm right. The wolf demon already ran away from a fight with you. Clearly he doesn't want to engage with you if it isn't necessary. So why would he risk himself or his wolves in order to kidnap Inuyasha away if all he wanted was to kill him?"

"So if he doesn't want to kill or eat Inuyasha," Shippo said, "what does he want?"

"I can think of two possibilities that seem likely," Miroku said. "Either he wants Inuyasha as a hostage, or he wants Inuyasha for his ability to see jewel shards. Given that he hasn't come back to confront us with Inuyasha as his prisoner, I believe that taking Inuyasha for his ability is the most likely reason, but for either option he's going to need Inuyasha alive."

"How would he even know Inuyasha can see jewel shards?" Kagome demanded.

"Inuyasha told you about the wolf demon's jewel shards during your fight," Sango pointed out. "Obviously the wolf heard him."

 _Oh, right._ She ought to have realized that on her own, and that more than anything else proved to Kagome that she wasn't quite thinking clearly. _I have to slow down. If I panic, I won't be able to help Inuyasha._

Taking a deep breath, she said, "I'm sorry everyone. You're right. We'll camp out for the night."

Sango touched her arm briefly. "It'll be okay, Kagome. We'll get Inuyasha back, safe and sound."

Well, they'd certainly try. And if they didn't succeed, if Miroku's guess was wrong and Inuyasha had been killed…Kagome gripped the hilt of Tetsusaiga.

 _I'll make those wolves pay._

* * *

Inuyasha returned to consciousness slowly. His whole body felt achy and weak, like he'd been down with the flu for a week. _Wonder if this is karma for lying to the school about being sick so much?_

Someone grunted from close beside him, prompting Inuyasha to open his eyes and see what was going on. He and Koga had both been transferred to Koga's bed, and Inuyasha had the spot closest to the wall, much to his annoyance. Sharing a bed with Shippo was one thing. Shippo was little. Sharing a bed with Koga was just weird. But despite the weirdness, Inuyasha couldn't muster up the energy to move.

 _Whatever. I'll just deal with it for now._

"So, you two are finally awake," said Yasu, leaning over to check on them.

"What happened?" Koga asked without bothering to open his eyes.

"You haven't figured it out?" Yasu asked. "I really would have expected one of you to realize that a blood ceremony between a demon and a priest could have some unpleasant side effects." The tone in which he spoke was very mild, but somehow Inuyasha felt like the older wolf was calling them both idiots.

"Technically, I'm still in training," Inuyasha defended himself, though without much vigor. He looked over at Koga. "What's your excuse?"

Koga cracked one eye open for a moment to look at him. "I didn't realize you were a priest."

"You thought a normal human would be capable of seeing jewel shards?" Yasu asked. Again, his tone only sounded mildly curious, but somehow Inuyasha felt there was an unspoken "you idiot" hanging in his words. "I wish you'd have consulted me first, Koga. A fine mess it would have been if you'd killed your little brother and yourself while trying to adopt him."

It took Inuyasha a moment to puzzle out the fact that the phrase "little brother" was meant to refer to him. "Wait, little brother?" he asked with more energy than he'd had yet.

Koga opened both eyes then. "I said I was adopting you into my family, didn't I?"

Now that he mentioned it, Inuyasha remembered that he had said that. But Inuyasha had thought of that as a formality. He hadn't realized that meant they would actually consider him to be Koga's relative in any official sense. Inuyasha didn't much like the idea of being considered Koga's little brother, but he supposed it could have been worse. He could have been adopted as Koga's son.

Koga pushed himself up into a sitting position and looked over at Yasu. "How long were we out?"

"All afternoon and all night," Yasu replied. "It's morning now."

 _That long? Then what about the others? I know they'll be coming to rescue me, so why haven't they gotten here yet?_

Kagome had said that tracking down the wolf tribe's hideout wouldn't be easy the closer in they got, but they must be having even more trouble tracking them down than Inuyasha had expected.

 _Wait a second, the others are coming to rescue me, and kill Koga, and take his jewel shards…Crap._

The others would have no idea that killing Koga wasn't necessary anymore since he'd agreed that the wolf tribe would no longer eat humans, nor would they have any idea that Inuyasha's life wasn't in danger. What if when they arrived, they simply attacked the wolf tribe without bothering to talk first?

 _No way, Kagome wouldn't do that. She doesn't like fighting, or killing. She'll want to talk to them first._

But what if the wolf tribe didn't want to talk? What if they attacked Kagome and the others first? Inuyasha knew his friends would defend themselves and with lethal force if they deemed it necessary.

 _I've got to be there when Kagome and the others show up; I have to stop them from getting into a fight with the wolf tribe._

"That means the attack against the Birds of Paradise is going to happen later than I wanted," Koga grumbled.

"I wouldn't advise you to attack anyone right now," Yasu said. "You aren't fully recovered yet." He glanced down at Inuyasha. "And I'm assuming you aren't either."

"Assuming?" Inuyasha asked, also sitting up and grateful the action didn't cause him to feel another wave of dizziness like the night before. "I thought you were a healer. Aren't you supposed to know these things?"

"I'm a healer yes, but for wolf demons," Yasu replied. "I haven't had a chance to study human health."

"Oh," Inuyasha said, feeling a bit silly. It seemed rather obvious now that Yasu had pointed it out. But in any event, Inuyasha thought Yasu's assumption was probably right. He didn't think he had a fever, maybe, but he didn't feel all that well either. Despite the fact that he hadn't eaten since breakfast the day before, he didn't feel the least bit hungry, which Inuyasha knew wasn't a good sign for his health.

"How are your other patients?" Koga asked.

"They'll recover, though they'll need a few more days of rest preferably," Yasu replied.

Koga nodded. "Good to know."

"Speaking of things it's good to know," Yasu said, "is there anyone who is going to object to Inuyasha's adoption?"

 _Only everyone I know._ Kagome and the others would definitely be upset about this, and if his family or Sensei found out, well, Inuyasha didn't want to think about their reactions. "Yeah, actually."

"You mean those people you were traveling with?" Koga asked. "They won't be a problem."

Inuyasha felt a flash of irritation that Koga was so dismissive of his friends. "Actually," he said, "Kagome has a sword that can kill a hundred demons with one swing, Miroku has a void in his hand that sucks everything in, and Sango is one of the best demon slayers around. And you kidnapped me, after letting some of your wolves slaughter and eat a human village. They're going to think I'm in danger, they're going to be expecting a fight, and they're going to find me eventually."

Koga crossed his arms over his chest and looked away as Yasu sighed. "You can't make anything easy, can you Koga?"

Koga stood up. "We'll handle it. We'll go find them and let them know that Inuyasha is part of our tribe now, and they can go on."

Inuyasha frowned. There was something off about the wording of Koga's sentence. _It sort of sounds like he plans to send them off without me._ But that couldn't be right; Inuyasha had to keep traveling with the others to find the jewel shards. Plus, he had to go home at some point. Koga didn't really expect Inuyasha to stay here with the wolf tribe forever. Did he?

Before Inuyasha could ask some of the questions that were now bothering him, Koga said, "Come on, Inuyasha. Let's go find your companions and straighten this out. Or are you still too sick from the ceremony?"

Inuyasha did feel more like taking a nap than going on a hike, but he wasn't about to tell Koga that and run the risk of Koga trying to talk to the others by himself. Surging up to his feet, Inuyasha said, "I'm coming, I'm coming!"


	13. Chapter 13

Fever Dream

Naraku frowned at the news that the saimyosho brought him. Inuyasha was building up far too many allies. First the demon slayers, and now a tribe of wolf demons. "This will not do," he said to himself. "I must cripple at least one set of allies, but which?" Naraku considered his options. While the slayers were a potential threat, they had yet to do anything to impede his plans. The wolf tribe on the other hand was a much more immediate threat, especially if their ambitious leader intended to continue collecting jewel shards instead of contenting himself with the three he already head.

 _Besides, the wolf tribe already has a conveniently placed enemy I can make use of._

His mouth lifted in a smile as the pieces of his plan fell into place. "Hayasaka. I need you to speak with the leader of the Birds of Paradise."

* * *

"I still don't understand why you won't let me carry you," Koga complained. "We'd travel faster that way."

Inuyasha remembered the stomach dropping speed and discomfort of being carried by Koga the day before and shook his head. Feeling the way he did right now, there was no way his stomach was up to a run with Koga. Not that he was going to tell Koga he wasn't feeling his best.

"It's not happening," Inuyasha said. "Get over it."

Koga sighed. "But traveling like this could take hours! This place is basically a maze, and your companions don't know how to navigate it, so we have no idea which way they may be coming from."

"It isn't going to kill you to go at walking speed," Inuyasha said. _Might kill me though, if we have to go for hours._ Inuyasha wasn't sure if he had a fever, but he did feel weak and his body ached all over. If their search for Kagome and the others took too long, he might not have a choice but to let someone carry him, much as he rebelled at the thought. _If it comes to that though, I'll let Ginta carry me instead._ Koga had ordered the other wolf demon to accompany them.

Koga only managed to keep quiet for another minute before exclaiming, "This is taking too long! I'm going to scout ahead, see if I can find them."

 _Scout ahead? But if he actually finds them, they're going to think he's their enemy!_ "Koga, wait—!"

He was gone before Inuyasha could finish, kicking up a cloud of dust that made him cough. Waving a hand to clear the air, Inuyasha glared in the direction Koga had disappeared in and asked Ginta, "Does he always do that?"

Ginta sighed heavily. "Pretty much."

"That's going to get old fast," Inuyasha grumbled.

"Don't worry, little brother." Ginta patted him on the back. "You'll get used to Koga eventually."

Inuyasha looked at him sideways. "Wait, am I your brother too? I thought I was just adopted into Koga's family. Or are you related to Koga?"

"Oh, no, you're not officially my brother or anything," Ginta said rubbing the back of his head. "But you're part of the tribe now, and tribe is family, you know?"

"Not really," Inuyasha said slowly. "I've never been part of a tribe before, so I don't know what it involves."

"Humans don't have tribes? But you live in groups like tribes."

"Yeah, pretty sure it's not the same thing," Inuyasha said. He didn't know much about life in the villages, but he didn't think they considered their neighbors family unless they were actually related by blood, and in his time Inuyasha had certainly never been encouraged to think of his neighbors as family.

Inuyasha stumbled over a stone in the path that he hadn't noticed, and Ginta caught hold of his arm to steady him. "Whoa, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Inuyasha said shrugging his hand off. Ginta frowned and leaned uncomfortably close, studying Inuyasha's face intently. "Do you mind?" Inuyasha placed a hand on his chest and shoved Ginta back. "You wolf demons don't have any concept of personal space, do you?"

"Your face is turning red, the way it was yesterday after you collapsed," Ginta said. "Is that normal for humans?"

 _Crap, am I getting a fever again?_ He was warm, but he'd attributed that to the warmth of the day and the exertion of the hike. "I'm fine," Inuyasha said.

"You don't smell fine," Ginta said.

Inuyasha paused over the wording of that statement. "I don't _smell_ fine?"

"Nope," Ginta agreed as though he hadn't said anything weird at all. "Maybe you should sit until Koga comes back?"

Inuyasha bristled at the suggestion. As if he was going to sit around like some weak, helpless kid waiting on Koga. "No."

"I really think," Ginta started, but Inuyasha interrupted him.

"I said no, Ginta!"

Inuyasha marched on, determined not to show any weakness. He made it about two steps before Ginta yanked him back and shoved him down into a sitting position. "Sorry," Ginta said, and he sounded as though he meant it. "But no one else is around to keep an eye on you, so it's my job to keep you safe. That means keep you from doing something stupid if it's going to be bad for you."

Inuyasha stared up at him for a moment. Ginta was his _babysitter_? "You've got to be kidding me."

"Nope." Ginta sighed. "Wish I could make Koga rest. He's not fully recovered either."

"He isn't?" Koga had seemed perfectly fine to Inuyasha.

Ginta shook his head. "He's pretending because he's our leader, but I can tell."

That made Inuyasha feel a little better, knowing that he wasn't the only one still recovering from the blood ceremony. "If he's not feeling better, then he shouldn't be searching for the others by himself," Inuyasha said. "They're going to think he's their enemy."

Ginta shrugged. "There's not really anything we can do about that now."

"We could go after him," Inuyasha said.

"You're not hiking," Ginta said. "Not while your face is red like that. I'm pretty sure it's not supposed to be."

Inuyasha considered making a dash for it, but disregarded the idea. He didn't feel up to running, and even if he had, he kind of doubted whether he could outrun a wolf demon. Accepting the fact that he was going to be sitting here until Ginta decided otherwise, Inuyasha leaned back against the cliff face with a sigh. Besides, as much as he hated to admit it, Inuyasha really did need a break. "Sometimes humans can turn red without it being an issue. Like, if they blush from embarrassment or they might turn red 'cause they're so angry. In my case, I think I might have a fever."

"Really?" Ginta asked. He pressed one hand against Inuyasha's forehead, feeling for his temperature. "You feel normal to me."

"Then maybe wolf demons have a naturally higher body temperature than humans do," Inuyasha said.

"If you're really sick then maybe I should get you back to the den so Yasu can treat you," Ginta said.

"I'm not _really_ sick. Just a little sick. Besides, Yasu won't know what to do for me. I don't know what plants can be used to treat fevers, and for all we know medicines that are good for wolf demons could be poisonous to humans," Inuyasha said. "We should wait for the others to show up. Sango or Miroku might know something about what plants to use."

"That's the slayer and the monk you were traveling with?" Ginta asked.

"That's right." Inuyasha paused as he sensed Koga's presence rushing toward them. Almost as soon as he sensed Koga, he sensed the presence of his friends close behind him. "They're coming," Inuyasha said. He stood up, placing a hand on the cliff face to support himself, and was relieved when Ginta didn't try and stop him. A moment later they saw Koga, and he slid to a stop in front of them.

"Found them," Koga said. "They were following me, so they should be here soon."

No sooner had Koga finished speaking than the others arrived. Sango, Miroku, and Shippo were flying on Kirara while Kagome traveled on foot. He could see relief on all of their faces when they saw him. "Inuyasha, are you alright?" Kagome asked.

"I'm fine," Inuyasha said.

"Actually," Ginta started.

Inuyasha pointed a finger at him. "Don't you start. I'm fine."

"But you said—"

"I'm fine!"

Kagome glared at Koga, one hand on Tetsusaiga. "You're going to return Inuyasha to us, and you're going to hand over your jewel shards!"

"No, I'm not," Koga said. "Inuyasha has joined our tribe, so the only reason we're having this conversation is to let you know that you can go."

 _Well, crap._ Koga really did mean to keep Inuyasha with the Wolf Tribe permanently. Somehow, when he'd joined them, Inuyasha hadn't foreseen this happening.

Kagome looked shocked, turning her attention to Inuyasha. "You didn't."

"Um, I did," Inuyasha said. He was planning to go on and say that the reason he'd joined them was solely to prevent them from killing and eating any more humans, but Kagome's expression went from shocked to furious so fast that the words deserted him.

"You idiot! How could you do something so stupid?"

Inuyasha was stunned by the expression on Kagome's face. He'd expected her to be angry, yes, but he hadn't expected this level of fury. He glanced at the others and saw that Sango and Miroku looked grim, while Shippo looked like he might be about to cry. It was like he'd somehow betrayed them by joining the Wolf Tribe.

"Obviously he figured allying with us was a better idea than allying with you," Koga said, a self-satisfied smirk on his face.

Inuyasha's temper flared, and balling up his fist he hit Koga, which probably hurt Inuyasha's knuckles more than it hurt Koga's face. But it was satisfying to see Koga's head snap to the side and for him to take a half step back in shock. "What was _that_ for?" Koga demanded, glaring at Inuyasha.

"Because you're not allowed to insult my friends!" Inuyasha said. "And you're not allowed to put words in my mouth either! I never said anything like that! I only joined your tribe so you'd stop. Eating. Humans. That's it and you know it! If I was going to pick out who'd make the better ally, I'd definitely pick them over you!"

"Um," Ginta spoke up, "is your face getting redder because you're angry, or because your fever is getting higher?"

"Fever?" Koga asked, the anger mostly vanishing from his expression. "You shouldn't have a fever still. I thought you said you were better."

"You said the same thing," Inuyasha said, remembering Ginta's words about how Koga wasn't totally better either.

"Well I don't have a fever," Koga said, pressing both of his hands against Inuyasha's face to check his temperature.

 _What is it with wolves and touching people?_

"I'm fine!" Inuyasha said shoving Koga's hands off of his face. But then he felt dizzy, and he had to keep hold of Koga's wrists to avoid swaying.

"You're not fine," Koga said.

"He said Sango or Miroku might know what to do for a fever?" Ginta said looking over at the others.

Sango slid off of Kirara's back and marched over. She placed the back of her hand against Inuyasha's forehead. "You do have a bad fever," she confirmed. "You shouldn't be up and about, Inuyasha."

"It's not that big a deal," Inuyasha protested.

"Sit down," Sango ordered. Seeing that further protests would get him nowhere, Inuyasha sat. "I have medicine for fevers with me, but I'll need hot water to prepare it with. Miroku, go get firewood with Kirara."

Kirara flew off, though not before Shippo jumped off her back and scampered over to Inuyasha's side, dragging Inuyasha's staff and backpack with him. "Here, Inuyasha."

"Thanks," Inuyasha said, taking the items. He was surprised by how relieved he was to have his weapon back.

"Are you going to be okay?" Shippo asked.

"I'll be fine." Inuyasha patted Shippo's head in reassurance. "It's not like this is the first time I've ever gotten sick."

Of course the other times he'd gotten sick in his life he'd had modern medicine to help him get over the illness. He'd prefer to be home now, but there was no getting back at the moment. He'd trust that Sango, or whoever had put that medicine together, knew what they were doing.

Miroku returned shortly with firewood and Sango built the fire. She put water on to boil, sprinkling some kind of dried plant into it.

 _This is all kind of surreal,_ Inuyasha thought as he leaned back and watched the others. Two groups of people that had initially intended to kill each other now at a truce to try and help him get better.

"Inuyasha, do you know what caused you to fall ill so suddenly?" Miroku asked.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "The blood ceremony when Koga adopted me. I thought I was getting better this morning when I woke up, but I guess not."

Miroku looked grim. He turned to Koga. "Do you know what blood ceremonies with demons does to humans?"

Koga huffed. "Yeah, yeah, he's a priest, there are side effects, I already heard it."

"The effects I speak of have nothing to do with Inuyasha being a priest," Miroku said.

Inuyasha scowled. "You mean there's going to be more than just me getting sick?"

"There are ancient records at Mushin's temple of humans who have joined demon tribes with blood ceremonies, though such occurrences are rare," Miroku said. "The humans involved always change. They gain a form of demonic power, usually with increased strength, speed, and durability. But this comes at a price. Humans aren't meant to have such power, and it ends up wearing them out. Within a few years of gaining it, they die."

Inuyasha felt the blood drain from his face. That couldn't be right.

"None of our records mention a human with spiritual gifts going through a blood ceremony," Miroku said. "Hopefully your powers will do something to mitigate the effects, but there's no way to know."

"We didn't know that," Ginta said. "We've never adopted a human into our tribe before. We didn't know."

A heavy silence fell over the group. Inuyasha close his eyes, picturing his family's faces when he told them he was going to die. If he'd known what it was going to cost him, he'd never have agreed to join with Wolf Tribe.

"It's ready," Sango said, breaking the silence. She held out a cup for him. "Try to drink it all in one go."

Inuyasha took the cup and downed it all. The foul taste made him gag, but he kept it down.

"That's going to make him tired," Sango said. "We should get him somewhere safe to sleep."

"We'll take him back to the den," Koga said.

"We're coming too," Kagome said.

Koga glared at her. "No, you're not."

Kagome glared back just as fiercely. "You don't get a say in the matter! Not after…not after this mess!"

"They're coming," Inuyasha said before Koga could argue. "We're going to have more to talk about when I wake up." If Inuyasha's time was limited, then finding the jewel shards was going to be more important than ever, and he'd have to convince Koga to let him travel with the others.

Koga didn't argue with Inuyasha. They put the fire out, and then Sango, Miroku, and Shippo loaded up on Kirara again. Kagome knelt in front of Inuyasha for him to ride piggyback with her, for which Inuyasha was grateful. The medicine was already taking effect making him very sleepy. That combined with how tired he'd already been from the hike made Inuyasha doubt he could walk far on his own.

They'd been traveling for a few minutes when he heard Kagome whisper, "You should have stuck with our plan, Inuyasha."

"Wouldn't have worked," Inuyasha mumbled back.

"Why not?"

Inuyasha closed his eyes. He was too tired to explain. "You'll see. When we get there. You'll see." Before he heard Kagome's reply, Inuyasha drifted off to sleep.

* * *

It wasn't hard for Kagome to figure out what Inuyasha had meant once they arrived at the Wolf Tribe's den. There were too many of them; just killing Koga and taking his shards wouldn't have been enough to prevent the Wolf Tribe from killing more humans, and that had been what was most important to Inuyasha.

 _It was still a stupid decision, Inuyasha,_ Kagome thought while glaring down at his sleeping form on Koga's bed where they'd put him to rest. _Don't you get it? Just because this tribe won't be eating humans anymore doesn't mean all humans are safe. There are still demons out there that are going to kill people. It isn't like this really makes a difference. At least not a difference that's worth the cost of your life._

The thought that Inuyasha might die because of this made Kagome sick. She desperately hoped that Miroku's suggestion would be right, and that Inuyasha's spiritual powers would prevent the change from happening.

Shippo pressed up against her side, and Kagome slipped an arm around him in a gesture of wordless comfort. She glanced around to reassure herself that the others were all fine. Sango and Miroku had been cornered by the Wolf Tribe's healer, Yasu, who was quizzing them for all their knowledge about the physical needs and health of humans. Kirara had glued herself to Sango's side as per usual, and didn't seem likely to move.

Koga was not in the room himself, for which Kagome was grateful. She sincerely doubted she'd be able to speak to him with any kind of shred of civility after what he had done. Koga had left that other wolf demon, Ginta, with them however. Ginta had seated himself by the entrance and hadn't moved. Kagome wasn't sure if he was supposed to be acting as some kind of guard or what, but as long as he stayed there and didn't talk, she was willing to ignore his presence.

 _What are we going to do now?_

Kagome didn't know all the ins and outs of living in a tribe, having never been part of one herself. But Myoga had taught her some things about tribal demons, so she knew enough to realize that Koga wasn't simply going to allow Inuyasha to leave with them, and his earlier words had confirmed that. Tribe was family, and family didn't leave, not unless it was for the greater good of the tribe. So they'd either have to convince Koga that letting Inuyasha come with them would benefit the Wolf Tribe, or they were going to have to steal Inuyasha, because leaving him was not an option.

" _Obviously he figured allying with us was a better idea than allying with you."_

Kagome shook her head to clear away the stinging memory of Koga's words, because they weren't true. Inuyasha hadn't chosen the Wolf Tribe over them, not really. _But he did choose something over us. He chose the lives of strangers._ Kagome balled one hand into a fist, pressing her nails against her palm. It left Kagome feeling hurt and angry that Inuyasha had chosen others over her. But it also inspired guilt that she felt this way, because Inuyasha had made his choices with the best of intentions, and saving lives when possible was always the right choice.

 _But this choice could cost him everything._

Kagome resisted the urge to reach out and touch Inuyasha as he slept. She knew he was there and alive, could see his chest rise and fall as he breathed, could hear the steady beating of his heart. He was alive and as safe as he could be for the moment.

 _We have to get him out of here._

If Inuyasha was going to die, and she desperately hoped that somehow he wouldn't, there was no way Kagome was going to let him spend the last years of his life here with the Wolf Tribe.

Shouting arose from the main cave, shattering the relative peace of the group. Ginta and Yasu were on their feet first, while Kagome, Sango, and Miroku were quick to place themselves in front of Inuyasha's prone form. "Stay here," Yasu ordered, dashing down the tunnel to see what was going on. The shouting only increased, but there were so many different voices echoing that Kagome couldn't make out what was being said.

"What's that smell?" Ginta asked.

Kagome sniffed the air and noticed what he was talking about, a sharp, acidic stink. Then she heard a soft clinking noise, almost covered by the shouting from the main cave, and a small ball bounced through the entryway.

"Don't breathe!" Sango shouted.

A cloud of smoke erupted from the ball, engulfing them with the smell. It was so strong that Kagome gagged and choked, and the smoke burned her nostrils and throat and made her eyes water. Half blind, she whirled about to grab Inuyasha, but she overbalanced and had to catch herself on her hands and knees to avoid falling on Inuyasha. _Move, Kagome! You're under attack!_ But she couldn't. The smell was so overwhelming, so choking, it was all she could do to remain conscious. She felt Shippo clinging to her shoulder, his small body shaking as he was wracked with coughs. Then his hands loosened and he slipped away, and Kagome knew he'd fainted from the overwhelming smell.

 _Sango's shouting._

With monumental effort, Kagome looked over her shoulder towards the entrance of their cave and through the haze of smoke and tears in her eyes, Kagome could just make out Sango fighting with a male figure. _Hayasaka! Sango needs help!_

Kagome pushed herself to her feet, swayed, and crumpled, the smoke finally overcoming her senses.

* * *

Inuyasha didn't know if it was the shouting or the awful smell that woke him. For that matter, he wasn't totally sure if he was actually awake. He felt lightheaded and as though his skull had been stuffed with cotton at the same time, and the gray haze of the smoke made everything seem surreal.

He pushed himself up into a sitting position, blinking and trying to understand what was going on around him, but nothing made sense. There was so much smoke, and he could make out the still lumps of others lying around him, but he couldn't figure out why anyone would be laying down when there was obviously something wrong, and they needed to leave the cave.

"Sango, look out!"

Inuyasha focused on that voice, the only thing that seemed real in this moment. He turned in time to see Miroku take a blow that might have been intended for Sango. Miroku fell, and Sango cried out as though she had been the one hit. The figure that had struck Miroku turned toward her.

 _He's got a jewel shard!_

It was a tainted shard. Darker than Koga's shards. Darker than anyone's shards, except Naraku's.

 _I have to purify it._

He latched onto that thought. He couldn't think, couldn't puzzle out what was going on. His mind seemed incapable of holding more than one thought at a time, so Inuyasha held onto that one that was such a part of him, the knowledge that he _must_ purify the jewel.

He stumbled to his feet, pausing as a wave of dizziness hit him. _Purify the jewel. Got to purify the jewel._ Sango said something, but all of Inuyasha's focus was on the figure with the tainted shard, the shard he had to purify. He stepped toward the figure, and Sango fell, and Inuyasha kept walking, and the figure turned toward Inuyasha.

 _Got to purify the jewel._

The figure reached out, taking firm hold of Inuyasha's shoulder. Inuyasha reached up and grasped the figure's arm.

 _Got to purify the jewel._

Power crashed through him. The jewel shard flared with brilliant, pure light. The figure gasped, and Inuyasha finally recognized him. "Ha-Hayasaka?"

"Don't let go," Hayasaka gasped. "Don't stop. We have to finish this now, Inuyasha, before anyone else gets hurt."

With his free hand, Hayasaka yanked on his shirt, pulling it open until it no longer covered the glowing spot that the jewel shard had been placed in. Then he had a knife in his hand, and there was blood on the knife, which seemed important to Inuyasha, but he couldn't understand why.

Hayasaka dug the knife into his chest, and this was wrongwrongwrong, and the jewel shard was uncovered, glowing and pure and surrounded by blood and flesh. "Take it out, Inuyasha."

 _No, no, this is_ wrong.

"Now, Inuyasha!"

It was the tone, the same tone that Sensei used when Inuyasha was about to be in huge trouble, and Inuyasha responded to it, reaching into the gash in Hayasaka's chest and pulling the jewel shard out. Hayasaka smiled at him, then his grip on Inuyasha's shoulder lessened, and he crumpled to the ground.

 _Sango's screaming again._

"Father! _Father_!"

Inuyasha stared at the bloody shard in his hand, and he swayed as lightheaded dizziness swept over him again. "Nightmare," he mumbled. "Just another nightmare."

He closed his eyes, let gravity take over, and fell.


	14. Chapter 14

The Birds

Koga hated sitting still, hated waiting, and so he couldn't stand the thought of sitting around the den waiting for Inuyasha to wake up. Besides, he wanted to avoid that half breed. Kagome was itching for a fight, and understandably so, given Koga had acquired Inuyasha from her and what the long term results of that would be. Since she was responsible for the death of several of his wolves, Koga would be only too happy to give her that fight at the smallest provocation.

 _And that…wouldn't end well._

He could admit that he wasn't sure who would win in a fight between himself and Kagome. He was faster than her, likely physically stronger than her, but that sword of hers…Koga shivered as he remembered that overwhelming surge of power he'd felt from it back in that human village that had made his fur stand on end. Inuyasha claimed Kagome's sword could kill a hundred demons in one swing. Koga believed him. Considering that a fight between them would be happening at the Wolf Tribe's den, whether or not Koga won that fight there would likely be casualties, and Koga couldn't risk that.

So Koga was determinedly avoiding a fight with Kagome, and he was doing so by scouting. At least, that's what he'd told Hakkaku when he'd left. Really, Koga was just burning off steam with a run. _Not as fast as usual right now._ Inuyasha had been right when he'd accused Koga of not being completely well yet. He wasn't as sick as Inuyasha, but he wasn't up to his usual self either, which was another reason to avoid fighting Kagome.

Koga's run slowed to a jog as he thought about how sick Inuyasha was. _I didn't mean for that to happen._ He'd had no idea that a blood ceremony could have such a bad effect on someone. They were just what someone did when a new person joined a tribe, and he'd needed Inuyasha to join them. _If I'd known what was going to come of it, would I have still done it?_

Yes, he decided. He would have. The tribe came first, always. Koga needed Inuyasha's ability to see jewel shards in order to defeat the Birds of Paradise and save his tribe, and even if the monk's worst predictions came true and Inuyasha did die within a few years, he'd still have time to do what Koga had originally wanted from him.

 _But it doesn't have to end that way. Once we take care of the Birds of Paradise, maybe we can find a way to save Inuyasha._

The tribe as a whole came first; it had to come first for them to survive. But Inuyasha was part of his tribe now, part of his family, and as leader Koga had a duty to the individual members of his tribe as well. As soon as the tribe was safe, he would find a way to save Inuyasha as well. Failure wasn't an option.

Movement through the sky caught Koga's eye, and he skid to a stop to concentrate on it. _Birds of Paradise._ In larger numbers than they usually flew in. "What are you up to?" He watched as they flew in a formation that clearly had some destination in mind. He looked ahead of them as well, trying to guess what portion of the mountains their flight would take them over, and that was when he realized.

 _They're going to attack the den!_

Swearing, Koga started racing back the way he'd come, desperation giving him extra speed that his current weakness would have denied him. _Why are they doing this now?_ The Birds of Paradise had never attacked their den before; there wasn't any point in it. In the event of an attack, the Wolf Tribe could retreat within the caves and the Birds of Paradise couldn't reach them. The waterfall covering the entrance to the caves was too powerful, they couldn't fly through it, and even if they could the Birds of Paradise would be at a serious disadvantage in the caves where they would be unable to fly. If they were actually attacking the den, it meant they had come into some unexpected advantage that could only bring devastation to his tribe.

The Birds of Paradise had too big a lead on him; even running at his top speed, by the time Koga arrived the attack had already begun. A handful of his wolves were outside, trying to fight the birds off. One of them swooped down towards Hakkaku, talons outstretched to snatch him up.

 _I don't think so!_

He jumped in the air, twisting so that both of his feet connected with the bird's side hard enough that he felt the creature's rib cage cave in. It crashed to the ground, and Koga landed on his feet. The lower half of the Bird's body tried to gasp for air, while the upper half screamed in pain, but a flick of Koga's claws silenced it.

"Why haven't you retreated to the den?" Koga shouted.

"Can't," Hakkaku panted. "Enemy inside, and he smoked the place. If we go in, we'll just pass out."

Which would make them easy prey for whoever it was that was inside the den. Koga's lips pulled back in a snarl. Going inside the den was a death sentence, but staying out here with an enemy who controlled the skies was also a death sentence, and they couldn't run away because over half his tribe was stuck inside the caves with an enemy who could kill them at his leisure.

 _We're going to die._

Against an enemy who controlled the skies and with no way to retreat, the outcome was inevitable. The only question was how many of the Birds of Paradise Koga could manage to take with them.

He snatched up a spear from one of his fallen tribesmen and sprinted up the side of the cliff. Twisting in the air as he reached the top, Koga let the spear fly, taking one of the birds through the middle of its bulbous body. Landing on the edge of the cliff for just a moment, Koga kicked off through the air, raking his claws over the wing of another bird, sending it spiraling to the ground where the others could finish it off.

Talons curled around his shoulders yanking him up higher in the sky. Swinging his body, Koga slammed both his feet into the underside of the bird and felt ribs shatter under his blow. The bird dropped, but its grip on Koga didn't falter.

A twist and slash of his claws freed him from the bird's talons, but he was still falling, and from a greater height than he'd normally willingly jump. Gritting his teeth, Koga braced for impact. He landed on his feet, pain shooting up his legs from the initial impact, but quickly fading. Then he was hit by nearly a ton of weight as the body of the bird he'd just killed slammed into him, driving him into the ground.

Koga tasted blood and dirt, felt the snap of cartilage as the force of his face driving into the ground broke his nose. The sharp pain in his side as he suddenly struggled to breathe told him that he had at least one cracked rib, probably more. With effort, Koga managed to shove the bird off of himself, and he crouched down in the shelter of its body for a moment. _Damn. This is bad._ With a broken nose the only thing he could smell was his own blood. He was down to relying on his ears and eyes only in this fight.

The thought froze him. _I can't smell._ Which meant the smoke inside the caves couldn't knock him out. Which meant he could go in there and kill the enemy in the caves, allowing his wolves to have somewhere to retreat, even if the smoke knocked the rest of them out.

"Hold them off as long as you can!" Koga shouted. "I've got a plan!"

No time to explain what that plan was. He'd just have to hope that his people knew him well enough to know that he wasn't committing suicide by sprinting into the smoky cave.

The smoke was awful. It stung his eyes, burned his throat, but the smell couldn't get to him, not over the smell of his blood from his broken nose. _Bleeding won't last long, need to be fast!_

He strained his ears to hear any noise over the roar of the waterfall; in the haze of smoke his eyes were almost as useless as his nose. He heard a noise, coming from the direction of his cave where Inuyasha was, the tap, tap of footsteps. Koga sprinted in that direction, claws flexing as he prepared for the kill, tensing as a figure began to emerge from the smoke…and then skidding to a halt as he recognized the unique outline of Sango's weapon. She paused when she noticed him, and by then she was close enough that Koga could see she was wearing a protective mask which explained how she was still conscious.

"Koga?" she asked.

"The enemy?" he responded. He didn't have time to explain how he was still conscious to her, not if he wanted a chance to be in and out before his own healing abilities worked against him by fixing his nose enough so that the gas would overwhelm him.

"Dead," she said, her voice oddly flat.

Relief surged through him. That meant the caves were safe for the others to retreat in. He had to let them know, and then they'd need cover so they could retreat into the caves. His nostrils started to sting from the gas, and Koga realized he had mere seconds before he was healed enough for the gas to get to him. Making a split second decision, Koga snatched Sango up and bolted for the cave's exit. As soon as they were past the spray, Koga filled his lungs with fresh, clean air and then bellowed, "Retreat to the den!"

There were precious few of his wolves left; more had been slain during his brief time in the den. They needed to retreat _now._ "Can you provide cover?" he snapped at Sango as he settled her back on her feet.

The slayer shifted her stance, favoring her left leg, and now that they were outside he could see a nasty gash in her thigh that still leaked blood. But she didn't complain, didn't bother with words at all, just grasped her weapon and threw. It whistled through the air, tearing apart one of the birds, which was all the answer Koga needed.

He sprinted forward, leaping over the water that pooled at the base of the waterfall, and dove into the fray, doing his best to keep all of the Birds of Paradise's attention on him so that his wolves could retreat. Between his speed and Sango's weapon, the plan was working.

Then a rumble of stone on stone came from behind, and Koga whirled around to see the entrance to the cave collapsing. _No!_

Sango dove forward into the pool, but between the dust cloud and sprays of water kicked up by the falling stone, Koga couldn't tell if she'd escaped unharmed. But that hardly mattered, because now his wolves had no easy means of retreat; there were other entrances to their system of caves of course, but none near the main entrance. Getting to those entrances would take time, time that would allow the birds to pick them off.

 _None of them should be strong enough to collapse the cave entrance like that!_ Which could only mean one thing; the leader of the Birds of Paradise, the one with the jewel shard, was here.

Laughter echoed. Koga's head snapped up to spot a bird flying in lazy circles, well out of range that Koga could jump or throw a spear. It was nearly twice the size of any other bird, and instead of one humanoid figure on top of the bulbous lower body, there were two. "You wolves are pathetic," it called down to him. "Are you so desperate for help now that you are begging it from humans? As if any human, even a demon slayer, could be a match for us."

Koga snarled. How dare it suggest Koga would stoop to begging anyone for anything?

Then it dove, and Koga tensed to meet its attack, only to realize too late that he wasn't the bird's target at all. The seconds it took him to realize this cost him his chance to intervene, and the Bird of Paradise snatched Sango out of the pond where she'd surfaced. She dangled from its talon by her left arm, too quickly out of Koga's reach.

"Really now?" the bird crowed. "This is your idea of an ally?"

Koga just watched; there was nothing he could do to save Sango now. He could only wait for the leader of the Birds of Paradise to dip low enough to be in range of his attack. Using her free arm, Sango managed to draw the sword at her side. It was brave of her, but it would be useless. No weapon forged by human hands would be able to strike down the leader of the Birds of Paradise, especially not while it had a jewel shard in its possession.

Except when Sango plunged the blade halfway into the bird's stomach, it shrieked, flinging Sango from its talon. Koga sprinted forward, leaping into the air to wrap his arms around the slayer. He heard her hiss with pain as the landing jostled her injuries, but she was alive. Koga looked back up at the bird, which was writhing in midair, the sword still stuck in its underbelly.

"What did you do to it?" Koga asked.

"Not sure."

Energy crackled around the bird, and the fur on Koga's tail stood on end as he recognized it. "That's Kagome's sword!"

Other Birds of Paradise flew near to try and help their leader, but its thrashing prevented them from getting close enough to do anything about the sword. It gave one last shudder and shriek, and then it plummeted from the sky, landing with a sound that made even Koga wince. On the ground it was perfectly still, and Koga could no longer sense any energy from the sword. The other Birds of Paradise hovered in the air, and for a moment everyone was quiet, shocked by the suddenness of the bird's death. Then one of the Birds of Paradise broke away with a cry, flying back in the direction of their nests, and the others quickly followed suit.

The tension drained from Koga's body as he watched them go. Finally, the fight was over.

"You can put me down now," Sango said.

Koga blinked, glancing down at the woman in his arms. He'd been so focused on the leader of the Birds of Paradise, he hadn't even realized he was still holding her. He complied with her wishes, but as soon as her feet touched the ground her left leg buckled underneath her, and Koga had to scoop her back up to keep her from falling over.

Sango gasped with pain, and Koga growled. He did not need to deal with this; he had dead and injured tribesmen to care for, not to mention his own injuries to think of, and of course they were going to have to figure out how to get the rest of the tribe out of the caves now that the main entrance had been collapsed. But Sango was his little brother's ally, and she was the one who had slain Koga's sworn enemy, probably saving the Wolf Tribe in the process. A debt like that simply couldn't be ignored. Besides, those of his tribe that had survived their injuries this long would likely continue to survive. Sango was only human, and if her injuries were left untended she wouldn't survive.

"Hakaku," Koga snapped. "See to the injured." The dead could wait until the living had been taken care of. The river in their valley was too muddy thanks to the collapse of the cave entrance to be useful for cleaning injuries, so Koga carried Sango to the top of the cliff in a series of smaller jumps to try and avoid jostling her wounds. She didn't make a sound in the process, but when Koga glanced down at her, she didn't look good. He could only see half her face thanks to the mask she still wore, but what he could see was far too pale and covered in sweat. "Is your leg the worst injury?" he asked, because the gash on her leg had been the only wound he'd actually been able to see on her.

Sango nodded mutely. Koga set her down near the river and used his claws to cut away her armor around the injury. Koga's frown deepened when he saw the extent of her injury. The cut on her thigh went deep, and blood seeped freely from it. He might not know anything about human illnesses, but he'd hunted enough of them to know how quickly they bled to death. Sango didn't have long.

"How do I fix this?"

"Can you get back into the caves quickly?" she asked.

Koga considered the question for a moment. He could make it to one of the secondary entrances without too much trouble now that he didn't have to worry about the Birds of Paradise. He wouldn't be able to go at full speed – now that the adrenaline rush from the battle was wearing off, his cracked ribs were making themselves more and more difficult to ignore – but he could still get there and back quicker than anyone else in his tribe. "I can," he said, "but the caves are still filled with that gas. I could only deal with it earlier because my nose was broken and I couldn't smell it."

Sango reached up for her mask with hands that trembled ever so slightly. She took it off and held it out to him. "This should protect you from the gas."

Koga took it. "What do you need?" he asked.

"My leg needs to be stitched up. I need you to bring me my bag." As she spoke she undid the red sash around her waist, pressing the cloth into her leg with a wince.

Knowing there was no time to waste, Koga tied the mask on and ran. It took several minutes for him to arrive to the next closest entrance. This opening was much smaller than the main entrance behind the waterfall had been. Koga had to duck his head to enter, and for the next several hundred feet the tunnel was narrow enough that any group of people would need to travel single file. The narrow confines would make this route less than ideal for carrying others out of the caves.

Smoke wafted around him, stinging his eyes. Already it was a little thinner than it had been before, but there was still more than enough of it to knock any member of his tribe unconscious. He slowed down in the caves, careful not to tread on anyone as he made his way to his private caves where Inuyasha's friends had been stashed.

When he finally made it to his cave, Koga made to step over the figure lying prone at the entrance, but froze when he realized it was the figure of a stranger. _This must be the Birds of Paradise's ally._ There was something familiar about the male, though Koga couldn't say what. Wishing he could use his sense of smell to tell more about the male, Koga crouched down to study him better in the gloom, one hand absently reaching up to rub his nose only to have his fingers touch the cool mesh of the mask Sango had lent him. Jerking his hand away, Koga stood, suddenly realizing what it was that made the male – the _human_ – so familiar. He was wearing the same sort of mask that Sango had, and the same kind of body armor.

 _He's a slayer!_

But that didn't make any sense. Slayers didn't work with demons in order to kill demons. Except, Sango did. She traveled with Kagome, Shippo, and that cat demon was her companion from the way she had stuck to Sango's side. Koga's hands balled into fists, nails pricking his palms. _Did she have something to do with the attack on my tribe?_

No, that couldn't be right. Sango had been injured already when Koga had found her in the cave. Because of the gas, she could have only been injured by a human, which meant this slayer had to have been the one to hurt her. He couldn't understand how or why a slayer would have joined forces with the Birds of Paradise to kill the Wolf Tribe, but Sango couldn't have had a hand in it.

Shaking his head, Koga stepped over the dead slayer and scanned the area. There was Ginta, slumped over to the right of the entrance, and just a few feet in front of the slayer was Inuyasha's crumpled form. _How'd he get there?_ The last Koga had seen, Inuyasha had been passed out on the bed. Bending over, Koga pressed his hand against Inuyasha's face. It was still as flushed and warm as it had been earlier, which he assumed meant Inuyasha's fever had yet to go away. Koga glanced over him for injuries and spotted Inuyasha's bloody right hand, curled into a tight fist. Quickly Koga lifted his hand for a closer examination, but it couldn't spot anything wrong with it, and it was only Inuyasha's fingers that were bloody, almost as if he'd dipped them in blood rather than actually having bled himself.

 _What's in his hand?_

Carefully, Koga pried Inuyasha's stiff fingers open. He froze when he saw the shimmering of the jewel shard resting in Inuyasha's palm. How had a jewel shard gotten mixed up in this mess? Koga took the shard from Inuyasha, tucking it away for safekeeping. He glanced around again, noting Kagome and Shippo unconscious by the bed, the monk and the cat demon over near the bags.

Remembering the whole point of his being there, Koga went for the bags. He wasn't sure which one would have the supplies that Sango needed, so he grabbed all of them. _I could carry someone out with me._

He hesitated for half a second, trying to decide who he should bring. Practicality won out in his decision, so he went out to the main cavern where he quickly located Yasu. His injured tribesmen would need their healer. Getting out of the caves with the bags and Yasu in tow – especially in in the narrow tunnel where Koga couldn't actually carry Yasu – was inconvenient but manageable. But finally he was back in the open air again and able to rush to where he'd left Sango.

She was still conscious which Koga took as a good sign, sash pressed over her bleeding leg. Koga dropped the bags beside her and laid Yasu on the ground as she began to dig through one of them. The healer hadn't woken up yet, but his breathing seemed easier now that he was in the fresh air.

Koga pulled off the mask and dropped it to the ground. "Need anything else?"

"I will in a moment," Sango said. She had pulled a bottle out of one of the bags. When she pulled the top off Koga was hit with the strong, unmistakable smell of alcohol. She didn't hesitate before pouring a liberal amount over her injury, washing away the blood. Picking up a smaller packet, she flipped it open to reveal needle and thread before holding it out to him. "Thread this for me."

Koga understood the need for her request when he saw the tremor in her hands. She wouldn't be steady enough to do the chore herself. Crouching beside her, Koga took the items from her and threaded them. "Now what?"

"You'll have to stitch it up," Sango said. "I can't do it myself now."

Koga hesitated. He hadn't expected a request like this. But Sango's pale face was determined, so Koga set to work as she gave him terse instructions on what to do. By the end of the process her face was drenched in sweat, but Sango hadn't offered up one word of complaint.

 _She's a tough human,_ he thought with grudging admiration.

A groan came from behind, and Koga whipped around to see Yasu was waking up. Koga moved to the old healer's side as his eyes opened briefly before squinting against the afternoon sunlight. "Are you okay?" Koga asked.

"My head hurts," Yasu said. "But other than that, I'm fine. What happened?"

Koga briefly summarized what had happened with the attack. As soon as he was done explaining, Yasu was on his feet. "I'd better go check on the injured." He hesitated for a moment, glancing over at Sango who had remained quiet throughout the telling.

She waved him on. "Go. You can do more for your tribe than me."

"I'll be back to check on you," Yasu promised before making his way down the cliff to the rest of the tribe.

Koga turned his attention back to Sango. He wanted to be down there with his tribe, but he was no healer. Koga would only get in Yasu's way. What he could do was get some answers from Sango, assessing how much of a threat remained to his tribe.

"It was a demon slayer working with the Birds of Paradise," Koga said, not bothering to mince words.

Sango looked up at him, and for a moment she just looked so tired. Brown hair had fallen out of her ponytail and was stuck to her face by dirt and sweat. Her brown eyes were blank, empty, and her shoulders sagged with an invisible weight. But then she took a deep breath, pressed her lips together, and straightened her shoulders. She looked every inch the warrior she truly was, and if Koga hadn't seen for himself just how weak the blood loss had left her, he'd probably never guess that at this moment she was incapable of even standing on her own.

"It was," Sango said.

"Why?" Koga asked. "I mean I get why a slayer would want to kill us. We eat humans sometimes." Sango's eyes narrowed, and Koga hastily corrected himself. "I mean _ate_ humans. But Birds of Paradise are just as likely to eat humans as we were."

"My village didn't send him," Sango said. "We would never join forces with the Birds of Paradise, for the very reason you mentioned."

"Then why did this one?" Koga demanded, because it just didn't make sense, and anomalies were too frequently threats.

Sango's gaze became distant, and Koga knew she wasn't really seeing him anymore. "Naraku," she whispered, her tone laced with so much venom that Koga shivered.

"Who?"

"He's a demon," Sango said, her gaze focusing on Koga once more. "He's after the Shikon Jewel. In the process he killed m…the other slayer. Naraku used a jewel shard to bring him back to life and keep him under his control. The slayer wasn't in league with the Birds of Paradise; Naraku was, in an attempt to get more shards of the jewel."

Which meant this Naraku person was responsible for every one of his tribesmen that had perished in the battle. _I'm going to kill him._

Revenge could come later though. Koga had other things to tend to at this moment. "Any chance he'll attack us again soon?"

Sango shook her head. "Naraku can be hard to predict, but I don't think so. He prefers to have other people do his work for him, so it'll probably take some time for him to manage another attack."

Koga nodded. That was some good news at least. "Any chance that smoke the other slayer used will do serious harm to my tribe?"

"No. They'll probably have headaches like Yasu, but there won't be any lasting effects. I'm not sure how long it will take it to clear out though, especially with the main entrance to the caves collapsed like that."

"It doesn't matter. As long as they won't be hurt we don't have to rush to get them out." He scooped her mask up off the ground where he'd dropped it. "Mind if I keep this for a while?"

"Go ahead," she said.

Koga turned to go back down the cliff, but hesitated, glancing behind him at the worn slayer. Excessive gratitude wasn't really his thing, but he _owed_ Sango. "Thanks. And not for the mask."

She just stared at him for a moment, like she didn't quite understand what he was saying. "You're welcome."

* * *

Fury flowed through Naraku's veins like lava, so intense that he shook with it. _How dare he?_ The plan should have worked; the Wolf Tribe should have been slaughtered, Inuyasha and his companions slain, and their jewels shards should have come into Naraku's grasp at last. Yet somehow, against all odds, Inuyasha had managed to take Hayasaka's jewel shard, and the Wolf Tribe had defeated the Birds of Paradise.

Inuyasha had been sick, helpless, and yet he'd still manage to defy Narkau's plan. _Just as she was, when she ruined everything._ Naraku snarled, miasma wafting behind him at the memory of Kikyo, broken, bleeding, in the moment when she should have used the jewel to heal herself, tainting it with darkness. Instead the pathetic wretch had let herself die, removing herself from his grasp forever, and the jewel for fifty years. She hadn't even given him the satisfaction of properly killing Kagome. Kikyo had simply trapped her against that tree, leaving her for the village to guard.

Naraku stopped pacing, a sudden idea blooming in his mind. A smile curled his lips as he considered the idea, which was so wonderfully perfect. He had spied on Kagome and her companions enough to know that the sentimental fools were deeply affected by the death of so called innocents, Inuyasha especially. And they had left behind a whole village of unprotected liabilities, who would be completely defenseless against anything Naraku should choose to do to them.

Laughter bubbled up in him, spilling out in pleased ripples. "Very well, Kagome, Inuyasha. If you will refuse me your lives, then I shall break your spirits."


	15. Chapter 15

Aftermath

Gentle sunlight and birdsong woke Inuyasha. For the first time since he'd done the blood ceremony with Koga, Inuyasha felt completely like himself again. He was also hungry. _How long have I been out?_ It felt like it had been ages since he'd had a proper meal.

Blinking his eyes open, Inuyasha stared at the tree branches hanging over his head. _Wait, why am I outside?_ He didn't remember getting back to the caves that the Wolf Tribe lived in, he'd probably been passed out by that time, but he was pretty sure they ought to have taken him inside. Sleeping outside was a good way to make fevers worse. _Though, I feel better, so I guess it doesn't matter?_ It was still weird.

He pushed himself up into a sitting position, only to have a tiny, furry cannon ball barrel into his chest and knock him back down to the ground. "Inuyasha! You're awake!"

 _I don't know why I get caught off guard by this anymore._

Inuyasha patted Shippo's head. "Yeah, yeah, squirt, I'm awake."

Watery green eyes stared at him. "Are you better now?"

"Much better," Inuyasha assured him. Inuyasha sat up again, causing Shippo to slide down into his lap, where Shippo snuggled close, hands fisting into Inuyasha's shirt. He clearly didn't intend to be moved anytime soon.

Inuyasha saw Kagome walking quickly toward him, concern written all over her face. "Inuyasha, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. "Feels like the fever is completely gone."

Kagome paused, biting her lip, and her concern didn't seem to lesson in the slightest, which didn't make any sense at all, because other than the fever what was there to worry about? _Oh, right._ Even if he didn't feel bad now, that blood ceremony might still be killing him. Inuyasha shoved that thought out of his mind. There wasn't anything he could do about it at the moment, and he'd rather not have to focus on it.

Instead, Inuyasha glanced around, and was shocked to see that they weren't the only ones outside. It looked like the entire Wolf Tribe had decided to camp outside in the valley in front of their cave. His gaze landed on the entrance to the cave, and Inuyasha stared at the pile of stone that blocked the entrance, the former waterfall now sliding down over the stones.

"What happened while I was out?"

Kagome crouched down beside him. "You don't remember?"

Inuyasha tore his stare away from the old cave entrance to look at her. "How would I remember? I was out the whole time."

Kagome looked away, as if his words somehow made it difficult for her to meet his gaze. But before he could ask her why she was acting so weird, she spoke. "After we got you back here, the Wolf Tribe was attacked by the Birds of Paradise. Naraku was helping them; he had Hayasaka attack inside the cave, using that gas the slayers make to knock out everyone who was already inside."

It felt like his insides were slowly turning into ice. Something about what Kagome was saying, about Hayaska, the caves, and the gas, was familiar and filled Inuyasha with a nameless dread he couldn't put words to.

She looked back at him, brows drawing together. "You really can't remember?"

 _Hazy, acrid smoke, Sango screaming, a shining jewel shard surrounded by blood, "Now, Inuyasha!"_

Inuyasha's breath came in short gasps. "No," he whispered. "I – I didn't. I wouldn't. It was a nightmare."

Strong arms slid around his shoulders as Kagome pulled him close to her, his face pressed into her shoulder. He wrapped one arm around her, the other around Shippo, because they were real, and warm, and alive, and – oh God, what had he done?

"Shh, it's okay," Kagome murmured. "It's okay. It wasn't your fault."

"She saw me." Inuyasha shuddered. "She was screaming, and I just…"

"It's not your fault," Kagome repeated.

How was this not his fault? Now Hayasaka was dead, really dead, with no chance of ever being saved. And Sango had had to watch it all happen, watched as Inuyasha had murdered her father. _She must hate me._ Inuyasha didn't – couldn't – blame her for that either. Inuyasha hated himself too.

Kagome's fingers brushed through his hair, a gentle, comforting touch, but Inuyasha didn't deserve to be comforted. He pulled away from her, shaking off her touch. "Is everyone else okay?" he asked.

Kagome's hand hovered in the air for a moment more, and then dropped in her lap. "We're fine. Miroku was hurt in the fight, but not too badly. Sango took the worst injuries, but she'll recover."

Inuyasha looked away from her. He didn't want to see Kagome's compassionate expression every time Sango's name was mentioned. "Guess Koga won the battle without my help after all."

"Only because of Sango."

Inuyasha's head snapped back over to her. "What?"

Kagome nodded. "After you – well, after, Sango took Tetsusaiga. She was worried Naraku might have had another slave by now to send after the sword, so she didn't want to leave it defenseless in case Naraku still wants it. Turned out to be a good call."

"She actually used the Tetsusaiga?" Inuyasha asked. "I didn't think humans could use it."

"Not exactly," Kagome said. "Remember when I first got the sword, how Sesshomaru couldn't draw it, and it burned him when he tried?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "But what's that got to do with Sango using the sword?"

"Apparently that barrier never went away," Kagome told him. "Tetsusaiga rejects the touch of full blooded demons, and Sango managed to stab the leader of the Birds of Paradise with it."

Inuyasha was amazed. _She saved us all, even after I…_ A sudden thought occurred to him. "Where is it?" Inuyasha asked.

"What?" Kagome asked.

"The jewel shard from…where's the jewel shard?"

Kagome scowled. "Your _brother_ ," she spat, "has claimed both of them."

For a moment Inuyasha was completely bewildered by her words, because how could Souta have possibly taken the shards, and then he realized that she wasn't talking about Souta at all. "Oh. Great." At least Koga hadn't figured out that Inuyasha already had other jewel shards, or he'd probably be trying to take those too.

"Inuyasha, it's good to see you awake." Yasu smiled as he approached Inuyasha, Miroku walking beside him, which surprised Inuyasha because what was Miroku doing hanging out with Yasu? The healer crouched down beside him. "How are you feeling?"

 _Awful._

"Hungry," Inuyasha said. "And like I need a bath."

"And new clothes," Shippo added. "Yours smell terrible."

Inuyasha glared down at him. "You don't have to sit in my lap, runt."

Yasu pressed his hand against Inuyasha face. "Your temperature has lowered; is your fever gone now?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "No more aches, and I don't feel tired anymore either."

"Do you feel completely like yourself?" Miroku asked, his violet eyes narrowed. Inuyasha understood what the monk was getting at. He wanted to know if Inuyasha was starting to feel any of the symptoms that would mean he wasn't quite human anymore, and that he would be dying within a few years.

"Far as I can tell, yeah," Inuyasha said.

Yasu stood. "I shall have someone bring you food. After you eat, bathing can be arranged."

"Thanks," Inuyasha said.

Miroku sat as Yasu left, and Inuyasha noticed the stiffness of the monk's movements, reminding him of Kagome's words that Miroku had been injured. "How are you doing?" Inuyasha asked.

"I'll be fine," Miroku said. "It's just some very bad bruises."

Inuyasha hesitated before posing his next question, but he knew he had to ask. "Where's Sango?"

"She wanted to be alone," Miroku said.

That effectively ended the conversation. Only a moment passed in silence though, because then Ginta was approaching their group with a bowl of food. "Hey, Inuyasha, glad you're finally awake!" Ginta said.

The way he phrased it made Inuyasha wonder how long he'd slept. "How long was I out anyway?" Inuyasha asked.

"The rest of the day after we met up, and all of last night," Kagome said.

"That's not that long, especially for someone who's sick," Inuyasha said, accepting the bowl of food from him. It was filled with what looked like some kind of stew that smelled great. His stomach rumbled and he eagerly dug in.

Ginta sat down beside him. "It's a long time to us. Adult demons don't sleep very much."

Inuyasha swallowed the mouthful of stew before asking, "So, where's Koga?" Not that Inuyasha was super eager to see him, but he needed to try and get the jewel shards off of him somehow.

"Checking the caves to see if the smokes cleared enough for us to go back in," Ginta said.

Inuyasha glanced over at the collapsed entrance. "Um, how?"

"There's more than one entrance," Ginta said. He lightly shoved Inuyasha's shoulder, nearly causing him to spill food all over Shippo. "It wouldn't be safe to live in a cave with only one way in or out. Too easy to get trapped that way."

"Right," Inuyasha said.

"Koga should be back in a few minutes," Ginta went on. "Hopefully the caves will be safe for us again. We're probably going to have to scrub everything down though to completely get rid of that smell."

Inuyasha finished the last bites of his food and set the bowl aside, his stomach now pleasantly full. Ginta noticed the action and immediately hopped up. "If you're done eating, we can head to the hot springs now."

Inuyasha immediately perked up at those words, because hot springs meant he could have a hot bath. "Definitely." Shippo jumped to his shoulder as he stood, which Inuyasha took to mean that the fox demon planned to come with them. "Coming, Miroku?"

The monk shook his head. "No, thanks. I've already bathed."

Inuyasha glanced over at Kagome as he picked up his book bag with his stuff. "See you in a bit." She just nodded without saying anything in response.

The hot springs that Ginta led him to turned about to be about half a mile outside the Wolf Tribe's valley. There were other wolf demons there already, but they were all guys so Inuyasha didn't really care about that. He was much too eager to soak in the steaming water.

Slipping into the hot water was amazing, and Inuyasha sank down until only his head showed. The atmosphere around the hot spring was rather somber, no one speaking, which seemed a little strange given how boisterous the Wolf Tribe had been so far. _But if there was a battle with the Birds of Paradise, some of the Wolf Tribe probably died…_

Inuyasha shied away from those thoughts. He didn't want to think about death right now. Instead, he decided to focus on Koga. _I've got to get the jewel shards from him, and I've got to be able to leave._ Inuyasha had no idea how to accomplish these things. Koga certainly wasn't going to give up the jewel shards just because Inuyasha asked, and as tempting as it was to try, Inuyasha doubted that punching Koga, stealing the jewel shards, and running away was going to work.

 _I wish Sensei was here._

Stupid wish, because even if Sensei was there, it wasn't like there was anything he could even do about the situation. But even if it was stupid, Inuyasha craved Sensei's calm, reassuring presence. _So, if Sensei was here, what would he tell me?_

" _Inuyasha. It's not your fault."_

Inuyasha drew in a sharp breath, because even thinking that hurt, and he just didn't want to think about it at all. He felt Shippo tugging on his arm.

"Inuyasha, are you okay?" he asked, his voice pitched low so as not to draw attention.

"I'm fine, Shippo." Even as he said it, Inuyasha wondered how many times he was going to have to repeat that lie. Suddenly the heat and steam were no longer relaxing, and Inuyasha finished his bath and got out as quickly as he could, Shippo and Ginta scrambling to keep up with him as he left the springs.

Irritation flashed through him. _Guess Ginta's still my babysitter._

When they were almost back to the valley, Inuyasha sensed a familiar tug at his spirit. "Koga's back from checking the caves."

Ginta looked over at him, surprised. "You can tell?"

"He's got five jewel shards," Inuyasha said. "That's kind of hard for me to miss."

Koga spotted them immediately when they left the cover of the trees, sprinting over to meet them. "You okay, Inuyasha?"

"I'm fine! Geez, would people quit asking me that already?"

"Well excuse me for being concerned," Koga said. "But last I saw you, you were sick and unconscious."

Inuyasha struggled to reign in his temper. Annoying Koga wouldn't make this conversation any easier. "Sorry," he said through gritted teeth. "Look, we need to talk."

Koga glanced in the direction of Kagome and Miroku, and then back at Inuyasha. "Okay."

Inuyasha led the way back to where the other two were waiting, there was no way he was having this conversation without them. When everyone had settled down, Koga crossed his arms over his chest and said, "So, talk."

"I can't stay here," Inuyasha said.

"You want to go after Naraku," Koga said.

Inuyasha's jaw worked. "How do you know about Naraku?"

"Sango told me about him," Koga said. Which didn't clear things up for Inuyasha all that much, because when had Sango and Koga had a chance for a sit down conversation? "I know he's the one responsible for helping the Birds of Paradise attack us."

"Um, yeah," Inuyasha said, still thrown by Koga's unexpected show of knowledge. "So we've got to go after him."

Koga nodded. "I agree. We have to get revenge for our fallen tribesmen."

Now Inuyasha was really floored. He'd been braced for this discussion to be a long drawn out argument, and now here Koga was being surprisingly reasonable.

"But are you sure you should be the one going after him?" Koga asked.

 _And there's the catch._

Inuyasha scowled. "Why shouldn't I?" If the next sentence out of Koga's mouth had any combination of the words 'human' and 'weak', Inuyasha was going to purify him.

"I was thinking you'd be more interested in finding a way to make sure you survive after the blood ceremony," Koga said.

Inuyasha stiffened. No one else had mentioned that he might be dying so plainly, and frankly Inuyasha had been trying not to think about it. "I can multitask. But I'm the only one who can sense the jewel shards, so I've got the best chance of actually tracking Naraku down. Or tracking down other people with jewel shards. We know Naraku is after the jewel, so he'll be targeting them eventually." And this was probably the best lead in to the other thing Inuyasha wanted to talk to Koga about that he was going to get. "That's also why I need you to give me your jewel shards."

"No way," Koga said. "I'm not giving up the jewel shards."

"You can't keep them! They're not some kind of advantage; they're just a target on your back." Grasping at the one thing Koga seemed to care about, Inuyasha added, "And a target on _your_ back is a target on the _tribe's_ back. Naraku's attacks are never straightforward. He's not going to target you, he's going to target the people you're responsible for. It's not a question of if he's going to attack the tribe; it's a question of when he's going to attack the tribe."

Koga's eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything. Inuyasha wasn't sure if that meant he was doing a good job of convincing Koga or not.

Pressing on, Inuyasha said, "Which is another reason I have to be the one to go after him. If I stay here, that's two enemies in one convenient location for him. That means Naraku would probably attack us sooner rather than later. If I leave, we'll divide Naraku's attentions."

Koga tilted his head, seeming to consider Inuyasha's words. Inuyasha waited, not sure if he'd said the right things, or how Koga was going to respond. "Okay," Koga said. "You go after Naraku. But Ginta goes with you. And I'll give you the two shards that were retrieved in battle, but I'm keeping mine."

Inuyasha decided he could live with the compromise on the jewel shards for now. It wasn't like he wouldn't know where Koga's jewel shards were, so long as Naraku didn't succeed in stealing them. But Inuyasha drew the line at being assigned a permanent babysitter.

"Why does Ginta need to come?" Inuyasha protested.

Koga rolled his eyes. "I'd be a pretty irresponsible brother if I let you wander off by yourself. Besides, no one leaves the tribe alone. It's not safe."

"I don't need," Inuyasha started, but Koga cut him off.

"This is _not_ negotiable."

Inuyasha bristled. Who did Koga think he was? It wasn't like Koga was really his brother, and there was no way Inuyasha was going to let Koga order him around like that. As Inuyasha opened his mouth to tell Koga to shove it, Miroku coughed. Not a regular cough, but the loudest, most ridiculously over the top fake cough that Inuyasha had ever heard. Everyone stared at him, and Miroku just smiled and waved his hands. "Oh, sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt. Just felt like I had something stuck in my throat." Behind his waving hands that would obscure his expression from Koga's view, Miroku glared at Inuyasha for a brief moment before his smile returned and he dropped his hands into his lap.

Inuyasha had spent enough time with Miroku by now to guess what the glare probably meant. Likely, the message was supposed to be something along the lines of "don't argue with him right now, stupid." Inuyasha struggled to hold on to his temper, because he was getting what he wanted out of Koga right now, or at least most of what he wanted, and making Koga angry might cost him that. _Quit while you're ahead._

He took a deep breath. "Okay. Ginta comes with us."

Koga smiled. Inuyasha kind of wanted to punch him, but he didn't. "How soon will you be leaving?"

Inuyasha's first instinct was to say now, because the sooner they got away from the Wolf Tribe, the better in his opinion. But he hesitated, glancing between Kagome and Miroku. "You two know how everyone's feeling better than I do. Are we all up to heading out today, or do we need to rest longer?"

"There's not much point in waiting," Kagome said. "Whether we leave today or tomorrow, we'll have to ride Kirara either way."

"Then I'll go get Sango," Inuyasha said. He stood up and dropped Shippo into Kagome's arms. "Where is she?"

Kagome glanced in the direction of the cliff wall. "Up there, with Kirara."

Inuyasha turned to Ginta. "Mind showing me a way up there that doesn't involve rock climbing?"

"Sure thing," Ginta said, hopping up.

Before they started off, Inuyasha held out a hand to Koga. "Jewel shards. Before I forget." Not that he could forget about them. But he was making an attempt at being polite.

Koga tossed him the two jewel shards, and Inuyasha managed to catch them without fumbling. Ginta led him out of the valley on a roundabout path that circled the edge. It swiftly turned into a steep incline, and Inuyasha was relieved when it finally leveled out at the top of the cliff.

Inuyasha spotted Kirara first. She was in her larger form, curled around Sango with her back to Inuyasha and Ginta. Inuyasha's chest clenched painfully at the sight of them.

"Hey, Ginta, I need to talk to Sango privately," Inuyasha said. "Do you mind?"

"Oh, sure," Ginta said. "I'll wait."

Inuyasha approached them alone. Kirara's ear twitched as he came, and she raised her head to look at him. Cats weren't very expressive creatures, so Inuyasha couldn't tell what she might be thinking as she stared at him, but she wasn't hissing, so maybe that was a good sign.

He walked around Kirara, her red eyes following his every move, until he could see Sango. Inuyasha froze when he caught sight of her. Sango had obviously cleaned up at some point after the battle, and she was no longer wearing her armor but was dressed in her kimono instead. Whatever her injuries might be, they were hidden by her clothes. Her brown eyes rose to meet his, and for a moment they just stared at each other, completely silent.

"Sango, I – "

"Don't."

Inuyasha stopped, words clogging in his throat. Her voice was like ice, hard and sharp and cold.

"I know in my head that it wasn't your fault. You weren't even really coherent. It was Father who made you do it. But he was my father, and you killed him. Right now, I can't forgive you for that."

Inuyasha looked away, unable to meet her gaze. It took effort to speak past the lump in his throat. "We're going to leave soon. If you want to go your own way…we'll understand."

Silence. It dragged on so long, Inuyasha almost looked over at her again, but he still couldn't quite bring himself to.

"I've got a mission. I'll finish it."

Inuyasha let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "Okay." Then he walked back to where Ginta was waiting.


	16. Chapter 16

One of Us Now

Heading out wasn't quite as simple a process as Inuyasha would have expected. Once their group had all gathered together, it had to be decided where exactly they were going to go. The initial plan when Inuyasha had come to the past had been to head for the mountain where Naraku had created his new body and see if they could pick up his trail from there. By now that trail was sure to be completely cold, and so there was a question of whether it was even worth going there at all at this point. However, no one had any better idea of where to go searching for Naraku, and so they decided to continue on to their original destination.

Personally, Inuyasha would have liked the chance to go home. He'd already been gone five days, and it would take several more for him to make it back to the well. If he was gone too much longer, his family was going to start to worry. But he hadn't wanted to bring up the well or the fact that he was from the future in front of Koga or any other member of the Wolf Tribe, so he had no chance to mention it. He wasn't sure how he was going to manage to keep the whole time travel thing a secret from Ginta. But that was a worry for another day.

Finally they set off, Miroku, Sango, and Shippo riding on Kirara, Inuyasha piggybacking with Kagome, and Ginta running alongside. Most of the day was spent with Ginta leading them out of the maze of cliffs and valleys that the Wolf Tribe lived in, and it was the middle of the afternoon before they managed to get out.

When they were out, Kirara coasted down to the ground. "Kirara needs a rest," Sango told them. "She's not used to carrying this many people for this long."

"That's fine," Kagome said, letting go of Inuyasha. "We've still covered a lot more ground than we would have on foot."

"Is this where we're stopping for the night then?" Ginta asked.

"It's as good an area as any," Miroku said. "Unless you are aware of a danger that we don't know about?"

Ginta shook his head. "No, not really. I mean, normally we wouldn't stay in such an open area because of the Birds of Paradise, but I don't think we'll have to worry about them tonight." He visibly hesitated before adding, "If it'll help, tomorrow I could carry someone too so we can travel longer."

"A kind offer," Miroku said. "We'd be glad to take you up on it."

Inuyasha was at a bit of a loss as to what to do next. They didn't normally stop quite this early in the day. If they did, Inuyasha often took the time to spar with Miroku in order to improve his ability to use his staff, but it was unlikely that Miroku would be up to a good sparring session today.

 _Wait, the homework Ms. Sato sent with me! I haven't worked on it at all._

Inuyasha was never really eager to do school work, but he was less eager to go back to school over a week behind, especially since Ms. Sato had gone to all the trouble of putting the work together for him. Settling down, Inuyasha dug the untouched notebook out of his bookbag.

"What's that?" Ginta asked.

Inuyasha glanced up to see him leaning over Inuyasha's shoulder curiously. "My schoolwork."

"Your what?" Ginta asked, eyebrows scrunching together.

 _Apparently wolf demons have no kind of school system set up._

"The work my teachers assigned me before I came traveling," Inuyasha said. "They kind of expect me to have at least some of it done before I get back. Besides, Mom would kill me if…" He trailed off when he saw Ginta's eyes go wide.

"You have a _family_?"

 _Crap. I didn't mean to tell him that!_

"Um, yeah," Inuyasha said. There was no backing out of it now. He glanced over at the others. They all seemed to be paying close attention to the interaction, except Shippo, who was chasing after a butterfly. But none of them looked as though they were about to jump in yet.

 _Thanks for nothing, guys._

"You never told us you had a family!" Ginta said, his voice an octave higher than normal.

"No one ever asked," Inuyasha said.

"Yasu asked!"

"What? No he didn't!"

"Yes, he did! He told us he did, after you and Koga woke up! He asked if there was anyone who'd object to your adoption, and you only mentioned them," Ginta said, gesturing wildly to encompass the others. "You didn't say anything about a family!"

"What difference does it make?" Inuyasha asked. He couldn't help but feel like they were arguing about nonsense.

Ginta's jaw dropped. "What…what difference? It's _stealing_! You can't just steal new tribesmen from families! That's barbaric!"

Inuyasha stared at him, trying to wrap his mind around wolf demon logic. Apparently killing and eating an entire village of people was somehow okay, but kidnapping someone who had a family was super evil and wrong. _I really don't get them_.

"There's supposed to be the feast, and we've got to give them the proper gifts," Ginta said, pacing back and forth.

"How come Koga didn't mention any of this when asked me to join the tribe?" Inuyasha asked.

Ginta glanced over at him, the tips of his ears turning red. "Um, well, he was in a bit of a rush…"

"So he went about it all wrong," Inuyasha said.

"Erm, kinda," Ginta allowed. "But it wouldn't have been wrong if you didn't have a family! Which you told Yasu you didn't have! And you weren't traveling with any family; who just leaves their family to travel on their own?"

"No one else in my family is capable of making this trip," Inuyasha said. Though it was stupid to feel like he had to defend himself for traveling without a chaperone.

Now Ginta looked really horrified. "You were their only warrior?"

The use of the term "warrior" threw Inuyasha a little. It wasn't a term he'd ever applied to himself; but if he'd never applied it to himself, it applied even less to the rest of Inuyasha's family. Unless one counted Sensei, but Ginta seemed to be focused on blood relatives. "I guess."

Ginta made a noise that sounded like he was trying to groan while choking on air at the same time. "Oh, that's…that's really not…that's bad."

Shippo chose that moment to hop over, apparently having lost interest in his butterfly. "What's wrong with him?" he asked, leaning against Inuyasha and looking up curiously at Ginta.

"Not really sure," Inuyasha said.

"Not-!" Ginta sputtered. "It's your _family_ , how do you not understand?"

"Because I wasn't raised by wolves!" Inuyasha said, throwing up his hands in exasperation.

"I believe we're all a bit lost," Miroku said, cutting in.

 _Oh, sure, now you want to talk._

"Perhaps you could explain in simple terms for us?" Miroku asked.

Ginta glanced between them. "You really don't understand."

"That's what I've been trying to tell you," Inuyasha said.

Ginta sank down to the ground, letting out a sigh. Running a hand through his hair, he said, "Um, okay. Okay then. It's just, the survival of the tribe is what's most important, right? Because it's the tribe that takes care of families and individuals. For the tribe to survive, it _has_ to have warriors. I mean, without warriors, what's to stop the first enemy who comes along from wiping them all out?"

That sort of made sense, when looked at in the context of the world the Wolf Tribe lived in. After all, their nearest neighbors were also their archenemies. Without warriors, the Wolf Tribe would be easy prey for the Birds of Paradise. Ginta had no way to know that Inuyasha's family was five hundred years in the future, and the skills they needed to survive were very different than the skills needed to survive in this day and age. Being a warrior simply wasn't one of the skills required.

But the way Ginta saw things, stealing Inuyasha from his family when Inuyasha was their only warrior was the same thing as condemning Inuyasha's family to death. Inuyasha could understand generally speaking why this was a bad thing. But what he couldn't wrap his head around was why this was so terrible and eating people wasn't.

"So, what, does this mean Koga shouldn't have adopted me at all?" Inuyasha asked.

"Not necessarily. But there should have been a trade," Ginta said.

Inuyasha wasn't sure he wanted to know what that meant, but he asked anyway. "What kind of trade?"

"One of our warriors for you," Ginta said as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

 _Yeah, I don't think Mom or Gramps would go for that._ He couldn't even really imagine how they would react to such a suggestion, but Inuyasha was sure it wouldn't be good. He imagined Sensei would be equally displeased at the arrangement. And there was no way Inuyasha was going to unleash any member of the Wolf Tribe on the unsuspecting future. The future was absolutely not prepared to handle them.

"Okay," Inuyasha said. "Well, there isn't anything we can do about that right now, so we'll just save that issue for later." It was the most diplomatic thing he could think of to say, since 'no way in hell are we trading like that' probably wouldn't go over very well. To show the conversation was completely closed, Inuyasha turned back to his schoolwork, and taking the hint, the others drifted away from him. But now he found it hard to focus, his mind continually drifting back to Ginta's revelation.

 _How do I even get in these messes?_

He knew how Kagome would probably answer that; she'd say he was too hotheaded and that he didn't think his actions through. Inuyasha glanced over at her. She was listening to Shippo talk animatedly about something or other. _Come to think of it, she hasn't said much to me today._ Thinking back, Inuyasha realized that he hadn't had a proper conversation with her since he'd woken up that morning and she'd told him about the fight. Even when they'd been traveling, she'd stayed mostly silent. Not that Inuyasha had felt very chatty himself today. But it was weird. Kagome wasn't usually this withdrawn with him.

 _Hey, Kagome, why haven't you talked to me?_

Yeah, right, like that was something he could just ask, and with an audience no less. But now that he'd realized that she had been so quiet, he wanted to know why. But how was he supposed to get her alone so he could have any kind of opportunity to talk to her about it?

Shaking his head, Inuyasha turned his attention back to his homework. He needed to have at least some of it done before he went back to the future, otherwise Ms. Sato would doubtless be upset with him. Besides, she had been trying to help in her own way by making this packet for him, and Inuyasha didn't want to seem ungrateful, so he needed to work on it while he still had sunlight to see by.

He managed to struggle through two pages when Miroku distracted him by standing and stretching. "I think I'm going to gather some firewood. We'll need to start preparing dinner soon. Care to join me, Ginta?"

"Um, sure," Ginta said, seeming surprised by the invitation. Inuyasha kind of was too; why was Miroku going out of his way to involve Ginta?

"I'll help too!" Shippo volunteered, bouncing over to the monk. He clearly had too much energy still to just keep sitting around.

"We'll be back in a bit," Miroku said, waving as they went off.

Silence fell as they left. Inuyasha glanced over at the others. Kagome sat, leaning back against a tree. Sango had settled herself as far away as she could while still being inside their small camping area. Kirara, in her larger form, was curled around her, and judging by the steady rise and fall of Sango's chest, she had drifted off to sleep.

 _Sleep is probably the best thing for her right now._

Chest tightening, Inuyasha had to look away. He couldn't focus on Sango. He didn't want to.

"How come you're so quiet?"

Kagome blinked, head tilting as she turned slightly to stare at him. Her steady golden gaze made Inuyasha uncomfortable. "So you want to hear what I've got to say now?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You weren't interested in hearing what I had to say this morning."

This morning…this morning when she'd told him what had happened during the fight, when she'd tried to reassure him that it wasn't his fault, and he hadn't been able to listen because _of course_ it's his fault.

Snapping the notebook shut, Inuyasha shoved it back into his bag. "You're right. I don't want to hear it."

Getting up, Inuyasha stomped off in the opposite direction that Miroku, Ginta, and Shippo had gone in on their search for firewood. He didn't hear Kagome get up to follow, but he did sense her pulsing presence closing in on him. Whirling about, he snapped, "Don't follow me!"

"We're not done talking."

"Yeah, we are." Inuyasha turned to keep walking away, but Kagome's hand landed on his shoulder and yanked him around to face her again.

"Exactly which of your problems do you expect to fix by running away?" she asked.

Inuyasha knocked her hand off his shoulder. "I'm not running away!"

"Really?" She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "Because from where I'm standing, that's exactly what you're doing."

"What do you want from me?"

"I want you to let me help!"

"You can't fix this!"

Kagome's lips parted, her eyes going wide. Inuyasha's throat hurt from the force of his shout. Hands curling into fists, Inuyasha continued at a softer level. "You can't bring Hayasaka back from the dead. You can't change the fact that I'm the one who killed him. There's nothing you can do or say to make any of this better. So just stop."

"You're right."

Inuyasha stared, because whatever he might have expected Kagome to say, it wasn't that.

"You're absolutely right, Inuyasha. You killed Hayasaka. But have you given any thought at all to what else you did?"

He couldn't breathe, because what other horrible thing had he done that he couldn't remember?

"You saved our lives." Kagome took a step toward him. "Don't you get it? Naraku sent Hayasaka to kill us, and thanks to that gas that knocked me, Shippo and the Wolf Tribe out, he was going to succeed. Miroku couldn't stop him. Sango couldn't stop him. But you did, and by stopping Hayasaka you saved all of us. Maybe if you hadn't been so sick you could have figured out a way to do it without killing him. Maybe. But you were sick, and killing him was the only way you had to save us. So tell me, Inuyasha, do you regret saving our lives?"

Emotion closed his throat, and Inuyasha couldn't answer her. He didn't know how. It hadn't occurred to him at all to consider his actions in that light. He hadn't felt as though he'd saved anyone. But of course Kagome was right, he had saved them. When he considered what would have happened to them if he hadn't killed Hayasaka, Inuyasha felt sick. He was _glad_ that his friends were safe. But when he remembered what their safety had cost, it hurt, and Inuyasha didn't know what to do with such conflicting emotions over the same event.

Kagome's arms slipped around him, pulling him close. Inuyasha stiffened for just a moment, and then all his resistance broke, his arms wrapping around her, and closing his eyes Inuyasha pressed him face into the juncture between Kagome's neck and shoulder. The soft fabric of her robe pressed against his cheek, and the warmth of her body was more comforting than the warm rays of the sun. One of her hands rubbed circles on his back.

"It's okay, Inuyasha," Kagome said. Her voice was so soft that Inuyasha almost didn't hear her despite their closeness. "It's okay to mourn Hayasaka's death. But don't hate yourself for it."

Inuyasha didn't say anything, he simply leaned into her embrace, finally allowing himself to draw comfort from her presence and words. But then he sensed the others returning from their hunt for firewood, and Inuyasha disentangled himself from her. He didn't want anyone else seeing him like that. Kagome just smiled at him a little when he pulled away, and then turned to greet the others.

Inuyasha drew a deep breath, steadying his nerves so the others wouldn't be able to tell he'd been upset. Then he followed Kagome back into the camp.

* * *

Warm morning sunlight promised a pleasant day ahead for traveling. Sweet birdsong helped add an air of tranquility to the morning. A tranquility that was, unfortunately, somewhat lacking among Miroku's companions.

 _I suppose,_ Miroku thought suppressing a wry smile, _I should have expected some disgruntlement._ Though disgruntled might be too gentle of a term when compared to the not so subtle glares that Inuyasha and Kagome were both sending his way thanks to his suggestion.

Miroku kept his expression placid and genial, and Ginta jumped in before either of the two could come up with a protest. "Sure, I'll carry Inuyasha."

And now there was no way for one of them to protest the arrangement without being outright rude to Ginta, which so far they'd both avoided doing. They'd managed to do this only because they were ignoring Ginta's presence as much as they could, Kagome with more success than Inuyasha. But the standoff couldn't last forever. Sooner or later things would come to a head, and when they did it wouldn't be pretty, especially since Inuyasha was bound to side with Kagome against Ginta. The worst case scenario that Miroku could think of in that situation was the Wolf Tribe feeling like Inuyasha had betrayed them all, causing the tribe to go from tentative allies to bitter enemies.

 _This alliance_ has _to work. We can't afford any more enemies while we're trying to find Naraku. And you, Kagome, are not helping matters._

Hence Miroku's suggestion that morning that Inuyasha ride with Ginta, and Kagome carry Miroku instead. It was the best chance that Miroku was going to get at managing a private conversation with her. Some bonding time for Inuyasha and Ginta wouldn't go amiss either. Probably. Hopefully.

 _I really hope this doesn't backfire for us._

Inuyasha caved first, with his usual graciousness. "Yeah, sure, whatever."

Sango and Shippo were already settled on Kirara's back, and the three of them took to the air while Inuyasha got situated with Ginta. Miroku turned to Kagome with a smile, but she just narrowed her eyes at him before turning and crouching down. _You know, this could be fun if she wasn't so angry at me._ But the tense set of her shoulders screamed her displeasure, and Miroku couldn't afford to make her angrier than she already was before he had his talk with her. Alas, the opportunity would have to be forgone.

"What were you thinking?" Kagome hissed at him as soon as she was settled into a steady run.

Ginta and Inuyasha were far enough ahead that they probably wouldn't hear Miroku and Kagome's conversation, and flying up ahead, Sango, Kirara, and Shippo certainly wouldn't be able to hear it. But not wanting to take the risk of being overheard, Miroku kept his voice low as he replied. "I could ask you the same thing."

Kagome's ears twitched in his direction. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the way you've been treating Ginta," Miroku said.

"I haven't done anything to Ginta," Kagome said.

"That would be my point," Miroku said. "You haven't done _anything._ At all."

"What are you trying to say?"

Miroku held back a sarcastic comment with great effort. Kagome wasn't stupid, so he didn't know why she had to be so willfully dense now. "I'm saying you need to stop ignoring him. Stop seeing him as your enemy. As long as you do, you're just going to make this whole transition more difficult for Inuyasha."

"You asking me to be happy that Inuyasha was kidnapped by the Wolf Tribe?"

"Of course not. I'm not happy about the situation." It made things needlessly complicated. If Inuyasha had just had the presence of mind to stall Koga, Miroku was sure that they could have rescued him. They probably could have succeeded in actually taking the jewel shards from Koga as well, and of course Inuyasha wouldn't be running the risk of dying in the next few years. If only Inuyasha had stopped to _think_. Miroku let out a long breath. "I'm not happy about the situation at all. But it happened. We can't change that. We can only figure out the best way to deal with it."

"You heard what Ginta said last night," Kagome argued. "Even by Wolf Tribe standards, they didn't go about the adoption correctly."

"He never said that made the adoption void," Miroku pointed out. "He just said they needed to give Inuyasha's family the appropriate gifts." How that was going to work when the Wolf Tribe discovered that Inuyasha's family was five hundred years into the future, Miroku didn't know. _One crisis at a time._

"Like it or not, Inuyasha is a member of the Wolf Tribe now. Pretending he isn't will only end badly, for everyone. We don't need more enemies, Kagome."

"…So what do want me to do?"

"Inuyasha listens to you."

She shot him a look over her shoulder.

"He usually listens to you," Miroku amended. "My point is that if you're nicer to Ginta, if you will accept him as part of the group, Inuyasha will eventually follow suit."

Kagome didn't reply immediately. For a few minutes, all that Miroku could hear was the wind rushing past them as Kagome dodged around trees. "It won't last either way," she finally said. "Inuyasha has a life in the future. He isn't just going to give it up to stay with the Wolf Tribe."

Inuyasha might not live long enough for that to be an issue. Miroku hadn't seen any sign yet of the increased strength and speed that was supposed to come along with a human being adopted though a blood ceremony. But it had been years since he'd read those records, and Miroku wasn't sure just how long it was supposed to take before those symptoms became apparent. Perhaps they would never show. Perhaps Inuyasha's inherent powers had been enough to fight them off; or perhaps Inuyasha's powers were only delaying the inevitable. Only time would tell.

"But if he's in good standing with the Wolf Tribe, perhaps an arrangement could be agreed upon," Miroku said. "That won't happen if they believe that Inuyasha is considering breaking their deal, especially since Inuyasha set the terms."

"Why is he such an idiot?"

"He's naïve."

Naïve, foolhardy, with a deeply ingrained sense of right and wrong, and some strange compulsion to protect everyone he met. Miroku admired Inuyasha's protective instincts, truly he did. But Inuyasha wanted to protect everyone, and sometimes that was simply impossible. Sometimes a person had to content themselves with what they could do, and let go of what they couldn't do. Taking every loss to heart would break Inuyasha. Miroku didn't want to see that happen.

At least Kagome had managed to talk some sense into Inuyasha last night. Or, Miroku assumed that was what had happened. They'd certainly talked about something, which had been the whole point of Miroku arranging for them to have some time to themselves. Since Kagome had been more talkative afterwards and Inuyasha marginally more relaxed, Miroku assumed it had gone well. But as long as they continued to chase Naraku, they would continue to deal with dangerous battles. Inuyasha couldn't have a crisis after every one of them. They didn't have time to deal with it.

"I don't like it."

"The situation, or Inuyasha's naiveté?"

"The situation, obviously."

"But will you work with it?"

"I don't have much of a choice, do I?"

She forestalled any more conversation by picking up speed to close the gap that had widened between them and the others during their conversation. Then suddenly a woman's scream rent the air, and Kagome's run become a full on sprint.

They burst from out of the trees to find themselves at the edge of a long, shallow pond. Wading through the pond was a young man with a badly bruised face on a horse, several armed men in guard uniforms with him. At the edge of the pond, several feet in front of Kagome and Miroku, were Ginta and Inuyasha who wore comically similar expressions of confusion. Between the two groups, sitting in the shallow water where she'd apparently fallen, was a young woman, her gaze darting between them in a manner that suggested she didn't know who to be more afraid of. Then her brown eyes landed on him, and went even wider with an expression of recognition and relief.

Scrambling to her feet, she reached out toward him with one hand. "Miroku, help me!"

… _Wait, what?_


	17. Chapter 17

Promises

 _I have no idea what's going on here._ Inuyasha didn't need details though to know that several armed men chasing a girl that looked younger than he was had to be bad news. He nudged Ginta. "Put me down." If it came to a fight Inuyasha wanted to be on his own two feet.

The girl flinched at their movement. Inuyasha almost rolled his eyes at her fear, and then he remembered that up until a few days ago the Wolf Tribe had been eating humans. This close to the tribe's stomping grounds, the humans were probably very aware of that.

"Be gone, demons!" the guy on the horse shouted, pointing at them. Though between his beat up face and shaking hands his order wasn't very impressive.

A shadow fell over them, and the men looked up, blanching when they saw Kirara floating above them. "Please," Sango said, "tell me you aren't stupid enough to try and pick a fight with us."

The guy's mouth worked noiselessly for a moment, his eyes darting between Sango and the clearly nonhuman members of their party. "R-retreat!" He wheeled his horse around, galloping off, followed as quickly by his men as they could go on foot.

"Guess they aren't that stupid after all," Shippo said. He peered curiously down at the girl who still hadn't moved. "Who's she?"

Apparently being under direct scrutiny was all it took to break her from her paralysis. Dashing around Inuyasha and Ginta, she dove for Miroku, who was by this time no longer riding piggyback with Kagome. She threw her arms around him. "Please, Miroku, don't let them hurt me!"

Miroku gingerly patted her head with his free hand. "Don't worry, uh, miss, no one here will hurt you. You have my word."

Ginta leaned towards Inuyasha. "Does he know who she is?"

"I don't think so."

The girl turned her head slightly to peak at Kagome and Ginta. Kagome smiled at her, and kept her hands loose and in view in a nonthreatening pose. Ginta smiled at her too, though his smile looked about as awkward as Inuyasha felt when he tried to talk to strange girls. Ginta tried waving as well, but the girl gasped and buried her face in Miroku's chest again.

Inuyasha yanked Ginta's hand down. "Stop that, you're scaring her!"

"I didn't mean to!"

"Why would you wave your hand? You have claws!"

"I can't help that!"

Shippo hopped off of Kirara to land on Miroku's shoulder. "Hi there, I'm Shippo!"

The girl's head snapped up with a gasp, and she stared at Shippo with wide eyes.

"What's your name?" Shippo asked, adding his biggest, friendliest smile.

"K-Koharu."

"Nice to meet you, Koharu," Shippo said. Pointing, he added, "That's Kagome. She's really nice. Up there is Kirara and Sango. Sango's a slayer, and Kirara is her companion. Kirara can fly, isn't that cool? That's Inuyasha. He's kind of grumpy sometimes, but he's really a big softie."

"Hey!"

Koharu glanced over at him, and to Inuyasha's chagrin, she giggled.

"That's Ginta," Shippo continued. "He's new, but he's alright. And you already know Miroku of course. Say, how'd you meet Miroku anyway?"

Inuyasha watched in amazement as the barrage of Shippo's words somehow made Koharu relax, her death grip on Miroku loosening. "It was three years ago. He travelled through this area, and stopped in my village to perform an exorcism. I had only been recently orphaned. Miroku found me and took pity on me, and he promised to come back for me when I was older." She glanced shyly up at Miroku. "And now you have, and now that I'm fourteen we can marry and I can bear you children like you asked!"

Inuyasha's jaw dropped. She was only _fourteen_! Koharu was still a kid and she was talking about marriage and babies. _Wait, wait! If she's fourteen now, and she met Miroku three years ago, that means she was eleven when Miroku asked if she would have his kids!_ "What the hell, Miroku?"

Koharu jumped, startled by Inuyasha's outburst. Miroku winced. Kagome glared at him, while Sango made a sound of disgust.

"Perhaps," Miroku said, "we should move on a bit before we have this discussion. We don't want to risk the angry young man coming back with more guards, now do we?"

"Fine," Kagome said. "But don't think you're just going to get away with this."

Kirara landed on the ground by Miroku. "Koharu, you can ride with me," Sango said. "We'll travel faster that way."

Koharu hesitated, clearly unsure if she wanted to approach Kirara or not. Miroku made the decision for her, lifting her onto Kirara's back.

They didn't travel far; just far enough out of the way that they wouldn't be immediately found if anyone was foolish enough to come after them. Before anyone could begin Miroku's well deserved lecture, the monk asked, "Koharu, why were those men chasing you?"

Koharu settled down on the ground before she answered, sitting close to Miroku's side, which annoyed Inuyasha. _He's such a pervert, even worse than we thought. Why's she acting like he's the most trustworthy out of all of us?_ Sure, he could see why she'd think Miroku was more trustworthy than, say, Ginta since the Wolf Tribe had been eating humans lately, but how was Miroku more trustworthy than the rest of them?

Koharu's eye's dropped to her lap as she fiddled with her fingers. "That was Abura, the young lord. I became a servant in his household not long after you left. Everything was fine at first, but recently I noticed that the young lord would watch me as I went about my duties. It made me…uncomfortable, but it wasn't so bad. Then last night, he made advances on me, and he wouldn't listen when I told him no. S-so, I hit him with some firewood and ran away."

She couched it in such painfully polite terms that it took Inuyasha a moment to understand what exactly that Abura guy had tried to do to Koharu. When it did click, Inuyasha scowled. He almost wished Abura would come after them, so he could give the jerk a few more well-deserved punches.

Then Koharu smiled and looked up at Miroku. "But now you've come for me, like you promised!"

Ugh, no. There were just so many issues with that. "Um, she can't come with us."

Koharu looked startled, her lips parting and her eyes going wide as she stared at him, and her expression made her look even younger than fourteen.

"Inuyasha," Miroku started, but Inuyasha shook his head.

"No. No way. It's too dangerous for her."

"Well we can't just leave her here," Kagome said. "This place isn't all that safe for her now either." She turned to Miroku and Koharu. "But Inuyasha's right. Koharu, our travels aren't safe. You'd be in danger constantly if you came with us."

Koharu lifted her chin. "I don't care. I'll risk anything, to stay with Miroku."

Inuyasha glared at Miroku. What had the pervert done to get this girl so obsessed with him after meeting one time three years ago? _Why did Mushin ever let him travel alone? Obviously Miroku can't be trusted around women, even when they're too young for him!_

Miroku closed his eyes for a second, opened them, and then turned to Koharu. "Perhaps we should speak privately for a few minutes."

"Okay," Koharu said.

Miroku stood, helping her to her feet. "We won't be long," he said, and walked off, leading her away.

"Well this is awkward," Shippo said as soon as they were out of ear shot.

Kagome huffed. "It was bound to happen at some point. As much as Miroku has travelled and flirted with women, we'd have to run into someone he's made promises to that he never intended to keep. I never expected her to be so young though."

It was the young part that bothered Inuyasha the most; she'd been eleven when Miroku met her. Who flirted with an eleven year old? Of course Miroku would have been younger too, fourteen or fifteen himself, but Inuyasha could assert that even at his age, the idea of flirting with an eleven year old kid was gross. Probably Miroku had never been serious about flirting with her; he didn't seem to be serious about any of the women he flirted with. But even so, the whole thing was just wrong.

"I have a question," Ginta said.

Inuyasha saw something flicker across Kagome's expression when Ginta spoke, a tenseness that only lasted a brief second before she relaxed again. "Yes?" she asked.

"If the girl can't come with us," Ginta said, "but she can't stay here either, what exactly are we going to do with her?"

Silence fell as everyone stared at Ginta. _That…is a really good question._

"We'll just have to find another village to take her in," Sango said.

"I hate to leave her with strangers, though," Kagome said. "I mean, she's barely more than a kid; if we just leave her somewhere, how do we know she'll be alright?"

Inuyasha had to bite his tongue, because fourteen wasn't barely more than a kid; she still was a kid.

"I can take her to my village," Sango said. "She'd be safe there. Besides, that wouldn't take us far out of our way. If I fly with her from the mountain to my village, it should only take me a day."

… _And I guess she really needs to go home anyway._

Inuyasha dropped his gaze. Yes, Sango's uncle had said that Hayasaka's death would be for the best. He still hated to think about her delivering the news.

"That could work," Kagome said. She glanced in the direction that Miroku had taken Koharu. "Hopefully she'll be agreeable to the idea."

"And hopefully we won't run into any dangerous situations while she's with us," Inuyasha said. It was hard enough to protect themselves sometimes. They didn't need to be saddled with someone who had no way of protecting herself at all. Even Shippo, as young as he was, had a few tricks for keeping himself safe. Koharu wouldn't.

Inuyasha sensed Miroku coming back. He glanced over just as Miroku came into view, Koharu following behind. She didn't look happy anymore; her face was scrunched up in a way that made it look like she was trying hard not to cry. _Guess he told her they're not getting married after all._ What was wrong with Miroku that he'd go around promising stuff like that anyway?

"Koharu," Sango said.

She raised her head, clasping her hands together in front of her, but didn't say anything in response to Sango's gentle words.

"It isn't safe for you to go back to your village now. If you'd like, I can take you to mine. You'll be taken care of there."

"Thank you, Sango," Koharu said, her voice quivering a little. "I'd appreciate it."

With that decided there was little point in lingering. They grouped up again for traveling, Shippo and Koharu with Sango, Miroku with Kagome, and Inuyasha with Ginta.

"Is it really okay to take her away?" Ginta asked.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. "I wouldn't consider this stealing. She said she's an orphan, and she hasn't mentioned any siblings or anything, so she's probably on her own. Koharu wasn't safe in her village and she agreed to come with us."

"That's another thing I don't get," Ginta said. "If she was orphaned as a kid, how come no one adopted her?"

Inuyasha was caught off guard by the question. "Is that what happens in the Wolf Tribe?"

"Of course!" Ginta said. "The young are the future of the tribe, and it's the responsibility of the adults to take care of them. Are you saying that isn't what happens with humans?"

"It kind of depends," Inuyasha said. "Sometimes people are willing to adopt kids. Sometimes they aren't."

"That's awful," Ginta said, shaking his head. "How could anyone do that to kids?"

Inuyasha was silent. His mind went back to the village that Koga had allowed his wolves to kill and eat. Koga hadn't spared children in that attack. He hadn't spared anyone; the entire village had been wiped out.

"How exactly is it any worse than you guys eating kids?"

Ginta stumbled, nearly dropping both of them to the ground before he regained his footing. "What?"

"Don't you know how Koga and I met?"

"No!"

Thinking back over their previous conversations, Inuyasha realized that he really hadn't told any of them how he'd run into Koga. He'd just assumed they all knew what Koga had been doing, and it had been clear from the first moment Inuyasha had been introduced to the tribe that they didn't have any qualms about eating humans as they'd mistaken him for dinner. "What did you think Koga was off doing?"

"He was hunting down a traitor," Ginta said.

Probably true. They hadn't run into any other wolf demon, but that didn't mean there hadn't been one nearby that Koga had killed. "Well he also let the wolves that were with him kill and eat a human village. They didn't spare anyone."

"Is that how some of the wolves that went with Koga died?" Ginta asked.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said. No point in hiding it. "We were trying to save anyone that might still be alive."

Ginta let out a long breath. "We'd thought the traitor killed them…This is about the worst adoption story I think I've ever heard."

"You still haven't answered my first question," Inuyasha said. Now that he'd finally asked, he wasn't about to let Ginta get away with not answering.

"There's a difference between abandonment and hunting."

"Sure. The abandoned kid has a chance of surviving. People you've murdered don't."

Ginta shot him a look over his shoulder. "We don't murder humans!"

"The hell you don't! Koga wiped out an entire village!"

"That was _hunting_!"

Inuyasha's power spiked with his temper, simmering just beneath his fingertips, and he barely managed to stop himself from singeing Ginta. The wolf demon flinched away from him, dropping Inuyasha and stopping just out of reach.

"It doesn't matter what you call it! The end result is the same; people are _dead_!" Inuyasha dragged in a breath, struggling not to lash out with his power at the sheer wrongness of it all. "Or is it not a big deal when the Birds of Paradise hunt and eat the Wolf Tribe?"

Ginta's gray eyes flashed, hard as steel. "That's completely different!"

"How? How is it different? Because the only difference I can see in the two is that you actually care about the Wolf Tribe! Well, news flash, Ginta. Even if you don't care about the humans that were killed, _someone_ cared about them! They were people, they were important, and now he's just dead and it's my fault!"

Ginta's expression morphed from anger to confusion. "Your fault?"

The blood drained from Inuyasha's face, leaving him lightheaded as he realized what he'd just said and finally remembered that he and Ginta had an audience. He refused to look at any of the others; he didn't want to see their expressions.

"Forget it. Let's just go."

Ginta hesitated, glancing around at the others.

"Come on," Kagome said. "We need to get farther before we camp for the night."

"Okay," Ginta said. Turning, he crouched so Inuyasha could climb on again, which he did without comment. They travelled in silence for only a few minutes before Ginta spoke again. "So what was that about?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Inuyasha said.

"Yeah, I think you do."

"Just drop it. You wouldn't understand."

Ginta didn't reply at first, and Inuyasha thought he was actually going to let the topic die. But then he asked, "Is it because the slayer you killed was Sango's father?"

Inuyasha stiffened. "How did you know about that?"

"Koga. When he was checking the caves to see if the smoke had cleared out enough for us, he noticed the slayer's scent. He told me about it before we left."

Inuyasha didn't reply. What was there to say?

"I'm sorry you had to do that." Ginta glanced over his shoulder at Inuyasha, and Inuyasha was surprised to see genuine sympathy in his expression. "But at least you kept the situation from being worse."

"How exactly could that have been worse?"

"If you hadn't killed him, Sango would have had to. You don't ask family to do that. Not if there's another option."

Inuyasha stared at the back of Ginta's head for a minute. Then slowly, Inuyasha raised his face to look up at Kirara flying up ahead, Sango, Shippo and Koharu on her back. The tightness in his chest eased just a bit. Because maybe Sango hated him, but at least she didn't have to hate herself. "Yeah. I guess you're right about that."

* * *

Kagome kept them traveling later than they usually would have, making it near sunset by the time they stopped. There was little time for relaxing as they bustled about setting up camp and getting dinner going, which was how Inuyasha preferred it. If they stayed busy there was no need for awkward conversations where everyone pretended that they hadn't heard the things Inuyasha had said earlier.

But of course the busyness couldn't last for long; soon camp was set, dinner eaten and cleaned up, and everyone was bedding down for the night. Well, everyone except Ginta. Since he didn't need to sleep with the same frequency as the rest of them, he'd sort of appointed himself as the night guard, vanishing out of sight of the camp not long after they laid down, though not out of the range that Inuyasha could sense.

Sleep proved to be elusive. Though physically tired, Inuyasha's mind was still restless, and he couldn't get settled enough to actually drift off. But he didn't want to think, so Inuyasha settled for staring at the stars, so much brighter and more plentiful than what he ever saw at home, and tried to pick out constellations. Not that he was really familiar with constellations, but patterns were patterns, weren't they?

Half an hour later Inuyasha was mentally cursing whoever had decided that groups of stars looked like anything other than triangles when he heard soft, slow footsteps approaching him. He knew it wasn't Ginta, as Inuyasha could sense the wolf demon still outside the borders of their camp, but he'd thought everyone else was asleep. Inuyasha pushed himself up on one arm, careful not to jostle Shippo enough to wake him, so he could turn his head and see who was approaching.

It was Sango, an expression of determination on her face. When she saw him looking at her, she raised a finger to her lips and then pointed in the opposite direction of where Ginta was. Her meaning was clear, but Inuyasha hesitated. He didn't want to be alone with Sango. _I don't really have the right to refuse._

Inuyasha nodded and carefully removed himself from his sleeping bag. Sango was already walking in the direction she'd indicated, and Inuyasha watched with concern. _She's limping._ The limp was slight, but that she was limping at all told Inuyasha something about the amount of pain she must be in from her injury. Yet for all the physical pain she must be in, Inuyasha knew that it couldn't possibly hold a candle to the emotional pain she must be feeling.

 _I'll just take it. Whatever she wants to say to me, I won't argue. I deserve it._

Sango didn't lead him far outside of camp. Just far enough where speaking in soft whispers wouldn't wake the others. She leaned against a tree to take weight off her leg. Inuyasha stood awkwardly, waiting for her to start. Sango looked at him, meeting his eyes, and it had never been so hard for Inuyasha to hold someone's gaze in his life. Her mouth opened, and Inuyasha braced himself for the attack.

"I forgive you, Inuyasha."

It felt as though the world had dropped away from beneath his feet, like nothing around him was quite solid, and he couldn't have possibly heard what he thought he'd heard.

Sango's expression seemed to soften just a touch. Or was that merely shadows playing across her face? "I forgive you. I hate what happened. But in that moment, there were no good choices. Only choices that could minimize the damage done. I…I couldn't make that choice. If you'd had to rely on me, you'd all be dead now. So I _hate_ what happened. But I forgive you."

Inuyasha was never very good with words, and it seemed like they always deserted him at the most critical moments. This moment proved not to be an exception, as he stared at Sango dumbly, at a complete loss as to what he should do or say. Sango straightened from where she leaned against the tree, and before Inuyasha quite knew what was happening, she was hugging him.

"I forgive you, Inuyasha, and I'll say it as many times as you need me to so you can forgive yourself."

The hug lasted only moments, and then she pulled away. She offered him one last tentative smile, and then she was turning back to the camp. Inuyasha stood where he was, watching her go.

"Inuyasha?"

He turned at the whisper to find Ginta watching him with a frown. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay."

For the first time in days, Inuyasha wasn't lying.


	18. Chapter 18

Forlorn Hope

 _I've got a bad feeling about this mountain._ Standing at the top of the mountain where Naraku had formed his new body, Inuyasha couldn't quite suppress a shiver. He'd initially been relieved to finally catch sight of the mountain late that morning, knowing that the sooner they examined the mountain, the sooner they could be on their way and the sooner he could get home. But now that he was actually here, he almost wished it had taken longer.

The mountain felt liked it was cloaked with darkness; the very air felt heavier. It made the hair on the back of his neck stand to attention, despite the fact that Naraku was long gone.

"Whatever Naraku did here to form his new body scarred this land," Miroku said, his voice grim. "We'll have to purify it before we leave. If we don't, the darkness left will only attract more demons, which will likely endanger the village again."

Inuyasha glanced in the direction of the village, clearly visible from his current vantage point. Sango had told them about how the village had suffered, with blood raining down on it for days, poisoning people and crops. She had stayed down in the village to check on how they were recovering, and Koharu had stayed with her. The rest of their group had circumvented the village completely, given their recent history.

"He might have left a bad aura, but he didn't leave anything else," Kagome said. She shook her head. "It's been too long since he was here. I can't pick up even a trace of his scent." Kagome turned to Ginta. "I know you don't know Naraku's scent, but can you pick up anything unusual at all?"

Ginta shook his head. "No scents you wouldn't expect to find on a mountain. Like you said, it's been too long since anyone was here."

Inuyasha wasn't terribly surprised by the verdict. It had been a little over a week since Naraku had been here. The chances of finding enough of anything to track him had been slim. "Then I guess we ought to get to purifying the area." He looked at Miroku. "So, how do we do that?"

"Aren't you supposed to know how to do that already?" Ginta asked.

"I'm still training."

Shippo hopped off of Inuyasha's shoulder. "We'll get out of your way." He scampered over to Kagome.

Inuyasha approached Miroku, who was standing in what was more or less the center of the mountaintop, next to a deep fissure. It was difficult to tell just how deep the fissure went, but based on Sango's story, this was where Naraku had come out of the mountain when his body was reformed. It was also where the strongest sense of the heavy darkness came from.

"Please tell me we don't have to go in there."

Miroku shook his head. "No. Since this leads directly to where Naraku created his body, it should provide an effective enough conduit that we may remain safely out here."

Inuyasha nodded, relieved that they didn't have to get any closer. Not that he didn't think they could handle it, but why go through more unpleasantness if they didn't have to? "So, now what? Chanting, sutras, what?"

"Chanting a prayer," Miroku said. He settled on the ground, laying his staff beside him. "Sit. This is likely going to take some time."

Inuyasha sat, and Miroku went over the chant they would need to use, making Inuyasha repeat it until he had it memorized. It took a while, but he finally had it down.

"Good. Now, for the chant to be effective, you must imbue the words with your power."

Inuyasha frowned. "Imbue the words with my power? How does that work?" He understood how to infuse objects with his power, like he'd done with his staff or the sutras that Gramps had taught him to make. But words? "Words are just sounds."

Miroku shook his head. "If the sound of the words alone was enough to get rid of ghosts or to purify areas tainted with darkness, priests and monks wouldn't be needed. Didn't you tell me you exorcised a ghost with a chant once before?"

"Well, yeah," Inuyasha said, "but I was using sutras too. I thought I was channeling my power through those, not so much through the words themselves. I've never done anything that involves just chanting."

"I see. We'll go step by step then. First, you must be able to enter a near meditative state."

Inuyasha frowned. "What's that?"

"You must center yourself, begin to turn inward as in a proper meditation, but you never do so completely. You should still be aware of your surroundings. In fact, your awareness of others around you should sharpen."

Inuyasha considered his words. That sounded sort of like what Kaede had had him doing when she'd taught him how to be aware of the presence of others. "Okay. I think I can do that."

Miroku smiled. "That's going to be the easy part. Next, you must be able to channel your power. Do so by concentrating on the chant, letting your power flow out of you through the words."

That part made less sense, and Inuyasha scowled.

"Perhaps a demonstration would be more helpful," Miroku said. "I'll begin. Join in when you're ready."

Miroku closed his eyes, and in the space of a breath, Inuyasha could tell that he'd entered that near meditative state he'd been talking about. He started chanting, and the hair on the back of Inuyasha's neck prickled as he sensed Miroku's power stirring, but he couldn't tell if the power was having any effect yet on the dark taint.

 _Guess I need to try and figure this out._

Closing his eyes, Inuyasha centered himself, slipping into a meditative state before consciously stepping back from himself the way Kaede had taught him. The surrounding area sprang into sharp relief in his mind; Ginta, Kagome, and Shippo were bright presences at a safe distance behind him, and the darkness that Naraku had left behind was even more noticeable, hanging over him and Miroku and seeping down into the mountain like some kind of evil fog. Miroku beside him was a steady, constant light, and now Inuyasha could see, sort of, how Miroku's power flowed from him, meeting the darkness in a steaming, roiling mass that eventually caused the darkness to draw in on itself, but it was slow going.

 _It would take Miroku forever to do this by himself._

Inuyasha opened his mouth to join in the chanting, but hesitated. He could clearly sense the reservoir of power inside himself, but he had no idea how to go about channeling it through his words. _Nothing for it but to try I guess._ So Inuyasha started the chant, but only made it a few lines before he stumbled to a halt. His power hadn't even stirred a bit. He was clearly missing something, but he had no idea what.

 _Well if chanting isn't jumpstarting my power, maybe I need to focus on my powers before I start chanting._

It was worth a shot, and he really didn't have any other ideas. Typically when Inuyasha channeled his powers he guided them down through his hands to fuel an attack or to purify, which usually involved movement or physical contact with something. He'd never used them in any other way.

 _No, wait, there was that time when I made a barrier._ On that night when Jinenji and his mother had been killed, Inuyasha had created a barrier that had protected him from the centipede demon and her children. He'd never managed to replicate the action, but he wondered now if this technique that Miroku was teaching him didn't operate on similar principles, at least in that it needed him to release his power without the aid of a solid object to focus on. _If I can manage this, I wonder if I can make the barrier too?_

That was an experiment for another time. But if this task operated off of similar principles, then at least Inuyasha had an idea of a starting point. Remembering the feeling he'd had before the barrier had blazed into place, Inuyasha called on his power, letting it well up inside of him until it felt like the slightest movement would cause it to spill out. A deep breath, and then Inuyasha began to chant. This time, power flowed out along with the words, joining with Miroku's and beating back the darkness.

 _Yes! I've got it!_

It was hard to tell how much time was going by while he and Miroku chanted. The others didn't approach, though at some point Inuyasha sensed Sango and Kirara – Koharu presumably in tow – arrive and then leave. Inuyasha was tempted to pause and ask what they were up to, but he instinctively knew that the task he and Miroku were doing was best completed in one go. But finally, the last of the darkness faded away under their combined power, and they came to a stop.

 _Whoa._

He probably should have expected to be fatigued after using so much energy, but Inuyasha hadn't given any thought at all to how he might feel after the fact. He braced himself with his hand for a moment, standing only when he was sure that he could do so without stumbling. There was no need to alarm the others.

 _Miroku's leaning on his staff. Guess that took a lot out of him too._

Shippo bounded over, hopping up to his preferred perch on Inuyasha's shoulder, causing Inuyasha to stumble. "Whoa, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Inuyasha said, quick to reassure them. He didn't want anyone worrying about him just because he was a little tired. "You just caught me off guard."

Shippo seemed to accept the explanation easily, though judging by Ginta and Kagome's similarly suspicious expressions, they weren't buying it. But Shippo kept talking before either of them could comment. "I'm glad you're finally done! That took hours!"

"I can tell." Inuyasha reached up absently to pat Shippo's head. "My muscles are stiff from sitting so long."

"You missed lunch too," Shippo informed him.

Inuyasha's stomach decided to punctuate that statement with a growl. He glanced over at Kagome. "You saved us something, right?"

"Of course," she said. She gestured to a bundle beside their bags. "Sango brought food from the village."

Perked up by the thought of food, Inuyasha wasted no time in getting to the food, and Miroku wasn't far behind him.

"Where is the lovely Sango now?" Miroku asked as Inuyasha started to dig in.

Kagome and Ginta sat with them. "Sango is taking Koharu to her village. She's going to meet us at Kaede's village."

Inuyasha paused before taking another bite of food. "We're heading back?"

Kagome nodded. "It seemed like the easiest way to make sure Sango could find us again quickly. Besides, since the trail here is cold, there's no reason not to travel back. Maybe we'll hear some rumors of Naraku on the way."

Well, Inuyasha certainly wasn't going to complain about that decision. Going back to the village meant getting back home, and he'd been gone a full week now. His family were probably all worried.

 _Oh, gee, my family._

Inuyasha glanced sideways at Ginta. Inuyasha still didn't have a clue how he was going to explain the whole mess with the Wolf Tribe to his family, or about the potential side effects of the blood ceremony he'd done. _Maybe I just shouldn't tell them…right. Like that'll go well._

His family always asked all kinds of questions about his travels, and the Wolf Tribe made up a big part of this story. Inuyasha was a terrible liar; he didn't know how he was going to spin this story to leave out the stuff he didn't want to talk about. _Guess I better start planning that now if I want to make it even halfway believable._

They finished eating quickly so they could get on their way. There were still some hours of daylight left, and it was best to do as much traveling as they could.

"Ginta and I will carry you two down the mountain," Kagome said. "It'll be quicker that way."

And for once Inuyasha was okay with being carried. He was tired enough after purifying the mountain that even the thought of walking down it was pure torture. Though Inuyasha was slightly less appreciative of the offer when it was Ginta that approached him instead of Kagome. _Wait, am I actually missing being carried around by a girl?_ Not that he'd want to be carried around by just any girl, but when Kagome carried him, it gave Inuyasha a chance to talk to her more.

 _Yeah, I'm never saying that out loud. Never._

* * *

Sango focused on the familiar movement of Kirara beneath her as the fire cat flew through the air. Koharu had remained silent since they'd left the mountain, and if it weren't for the younger girl's arms wrapped around her waist, Sango could almost pretend she was alone up here. Sango didn't want to be alone.

Sango turned her head to check on her charge. Koharu had her head tucked down, so all Sango could see was the top of her dark hair. "Are you doing okay, Koharu?"

Koharu raised her head slightly. "I'm fine."

She was keeping up a brave face. Her voice only quivered a little when she answered. _She reminds me of Kohaku, when he's trying to cover up being scared._ The similarity to her little brother made Sango's heart melt a little towards her, so Sango smiled reassuringly at her. "Don't worry, Koharu. Everything's going to be fine. You'll be well taken care of at my village."

The slayers might not interact much with other villages outside of their work, but that didn't mean Koharu would be the first orphan they'd taken in. Sometimes there were only one or two survivors from demon attacks that had nowhere else to go after. Most of the families in her village had at least one person that had been adopted in.

"I'm sure I'll be alright," Koharu said. She hesitated for a moment and then added, "It's very generous of you to take me in."

Koharu ducked her head again, but not before Sango saw the tears building up in her eyes.

 _That stupid monk. This is his fault._

Koharu didn't seem to have any attachments to her former home. She'd been content enough to leave it when she'd thought she was going with Miroku. It wasn't until after Miroku had turned her down that she'd been upset. _And why wouldn't she be, if she's pined after him for three years?_

Three years of hoping and waiting, believing that Miroku was her hero, that one day he'd return, swooping in to save her from her life of drudgery. And then for a moment it had seemed like he had, like all her dreams had come true, only to find out that Miroku had never intended to come back for her at all, and the hero she'd believed in didn't really exist. Of course Koharu was heartbroken; who wouldn't be, in a situation like that?

"Miroku's an idiot."

Koharu's head snapped up, her dark eyes wide. "Wh-what?"

"Miroku's an idiot and a flirt, and not nearly good enough for you. Trust me, Koharu, you can do better than pinning your hopes on him."

Koharu flushed, but seemed to be at a loss for words.

"I'll hit him for you when I get back to the group, if you'd like," Sango offered.

"N-no! That's not necessary," Koharu said. "It's not his fault…I just misunderstood the situation."

Sango frowned and twisted so she could look Koharu in the face. "Did he or did he not tell you that he would come back and marry you?"

"He did," Koharu whispered.

"Then this is his fault. Don't defend him when he doesn't deserve it."

Koharu's eyes filled with tears again, and Sango let some of her sternness drop away. "It's okay to cry about it, Koharu."

It was as if all Koharu had needed was for someone to give her permission. She sobbed, burying her face in Sango's back and tightening her grip around Sango's waist. Sango patted her hand gently, knowing the only comfort she could give to Koharu right now was a steady, quiet presence. _I really do hope you'll find happiness with us, Koharu. You deserve it._

* * *

It was after dark by the time the slayer village came into sight. Normally Sango wouldn't have pushed Kirara to fly so long, but there had been little chance of running into a fight so close to where the slayers lived, and Kirara had seemed eager to get home as well.

Kirara flew low so that the sentries on the wall would easily be able to identify them before they flew over it. Sango waved at them as they flew by. Kirara made straight for Sango's home, which was just fine. Most people aside from the sentries would be asleep by now anyway, and Sango wasn't eager to wake anyone up to share her news.

Kirara landed gently in front of the porch, as near the steps leading up to it as she could get. Sango patted Kirara's neck to show her appreciation for Kirara's concern. She slid off of Kirara's back, wincing at the pain that shot through her leg when her foot came into contact with the ground. Her injury was healing well, but walking was still painful. Ignoring her pain, Sango turned to help the half asleep Koharu off Kirara's back before Kirara shifted into her smaller form.

"We're here?" Koharu asked, blinking owlishly as she looked around.

"We are," Sango said. "This is my home." Sango schooled her face into a serene mask as she went up the stairs, despite the pain in her leg. She didn't want to concern Koharu, and she certainly didn't want Koharu to realize that it was more than just a physical pain that was hurting her.

The house was dark and empty, which she had expected. Kohaku was staying with their aunt and uncle after all. Sango got Koharu settled in Kohaku's room, and within moments of laying on the futon she was asleep. Then Sango retreated to her own room, laying down. Kirara curled up on her stomach, and Sango ran her fingers through the cat's silky fur.

"We're home, Kirara," Sango whispered into the darkness, and Kirara mewed in response. Tears blurred Sango's vision. "No. It doesn't really feel like home to me either."

* * *

Footsteps pounding up the porch steps woke Sango. She sat up, ignoring Kirara's protests as the cat demon was forced to jump from her perch on Sango's stomach. The door to Sango's room slid open with a bang, and Sango wasn't the least bit surprised to see Kohaku in the doorway. "You're back!"

Before she could warn him not to, Kohaku dove on her, wrapping his arms around her shoulders in a tight hug. Sango hissed with pain as the action jarred her leg, and Kohaku instantly let go, worry covering his face. "Are you hurt?"

Sango forced a smile despite the throbbing. "I'll be fine. My leg was injured during a battle, but I'll heal."

"Sorry," Kohaku said, looking abashed. "I shouldn't have jumped on you like that."

Sango ruffled his hair. "It's fine."

Soft footsteps distracted the siblings from their reunion, and they both looked to the doorway of Sango's room as Koharu stuck her head around. "S-sorry, I heard a noise…"

"That was my little brother running in rather rudely first thing this morning."

Kohaku's face flushed. "Uncle didn't tell me you'd brought someone with you."

Sango poked his side. "You probably didn't give him the chance. I know the sentries would have told him." Sango smiled at Koharu. "This is my brother, Kohaku. Kohaku, this is Koharu. She's going to be joining our village."

Kohaku glanced at Koharu with surprise and interest, but he didn't ask any questions. "Um, welcome home then."

"Thank you," Koharu said, glancing down shyly.

Sango poked her brother again. "If you'll give us a few minutes to get ready, we'll join you at Uncle's for breakfast."

"I'll go tell them," Kohaku said, taking the hint and leaving.

When he was gone, Sango stood and stretched. "I'll loan you some of my clothes for now," she told Koharu. "They'll be a bit big on you, but they'll do until we can get you some of your own."

Koharu smiled, stepping into the room. "Your brother seems nice."

"He is," Sango said as she rummaged through her clothing, searching for what would fit Koharu best. She was shorter and slimmer than Sango, so it would be a little tricky to find anything that would fit decently. "If you ever feel lonely after I leave, don't hesitate to talk to Kohaku. I know he'd be glad to be your friend."

Finding some clothes that would work, Sango sent her off to change before getting ready for the day herself. In short order, they were on their way to Uncle Seiko's house, Kirara following along. Kohaku was waiting for them on the porch. "Aunt Maho has breakfast ready," he called to them as they approached. Kirara darted forward, slipping around Kohaku and through the door.

"Looks like Kirara is more excited about breakfast than any of us," Sango said. Not surprising, given how much more she'd flown the past few days than was usual for her.

The three of them followed her inside and found their aunt and uncle waiting for them. Kirara had already been given a bowl of fish to satisfy her hunger with. "Welcome home, Sango," Uncle Seiko said. His eyes darted to Koharu, who was lagging behind Sango.

"I'm home," Sango said. "Uncle Seiko, Aunt Maho, this is Koharu. It's not safe for her in her village anymore, so I told her she could stay with us."

"Well of course she can," Aunt Maho said, smiling warmly at Koharu. "We won't turn away someone in need. Here dear, come sit by me."

Koharu took the seat indicated, and Sango motioned for Kohaku to take the seat on Koharu's other side. Since Sango wouldn't be staying, she wanted Koharu to get comfortable with her family as quickly as she could. Sango took the last seat, beside her uncle.

"What news do you bring us, Sango?" Uncle Seiko asked as they ate.

Sango chewed her bite of food longer than necessary, wanting to delay sharing the news she had to give them as long as possible. Just because she had forgiven Inuyasha for the part he had played didn't make it an easy topic to talk about.

Uncle Seiko briefly closed his eyes. "I see."

Aunt Maho's brow furrowed, and then cleared as understanding dawned on her face. Kohaku glanced between the three of them, clearly not understanding what the other two had grasped without words. His gaze finally settled on Sango. "What happened?"

Sango met his stare, setting her utensils down. "Kohaku. Father has been laid to rest."

Kohaku's bowl slipped from his hand, hitting the ground with the sharp crack of breaking pottery. He jumped to his feet and ran from the room. No one made a move to stop him.

Uncle Seiko sighed. "We knew it was coming, but it is not easy news to hear. He will be okay."

Sango forced a small smile for Koharu, who watched the scene with wide eyes and little comprehension. "Sorry to drag you into our family drama, Koharu. I know it's not a great welcome for you."

"It's fine," she managed.

"If you will excuse me," Sango said, "I'm going after Kohaku."

Without waiting for her aunt and uncle's permission, Sango stood and left in search of Kohaku. It was late enough in the morning now that others were about their business, but Sango kept her stride purposeful and no one tried to interrupt her. She knew where Kohaku would go, where he always went when he was upset. Leaving the walled confines of the village, Sango made her way to the nearby river, ignoring the pained protests of her injured leg.

She found him where she expected, sitting on a sun warmed boulder at a bend in the river, knees pulled up to his chest and staring out over the water. Sango walked up to the boulder, wondering what the chances were of being able to jump up there without tearing her stitches open. Deciding it wasn't worth the risk, Sango sat on the ground and leaned her back against the boulder. Closing her eyes and tilting her head back to better feel the sun, Sango waited.

Ten minutes passed before Kohaku finally spoke. "Was it Father that hurt you?"

"He was under Naraku's control. You know Father would never have hurt either of us if he had any choice in the matter."

Kohaku fell silent again, the only sound the movement of the river. Minutes dragged by, until he finally spoke again. "Would he have killed you, if he hadn't been stopped?"

"Yes. He would have."

Kohaku let out a broken, half choked sob. "I wanted him back."

Sango let her eyes drift open, staring up at the blue sky. "So did I."


	19. Chapter 19

Kagome's Soul Devoured

Part 1

Sesshomaru was not confused. Confusion was beneath him. He could perhaps, at worst, be puzzled. He could, on very rare occasions, even be surprised. He was _not_ confused. Especially not by a decision that _he_ had made.

"Lord Sesshomaru, Lord Sesshomaru!"

Sesshomaru paused at the sound of the chipper voice, glancing down at the small human girl that he had, against all reason, allowed to follow him.

Rin grinned up at him, her wide smile showing that she was still missing her front tooth, and Sesshomaru wondered vaguely if human teeth grew back, and if they did, how long did they take? She held up for his inspection a flower, some wilted pink bloom that she had picked. "Isn't it pretty?"

Her eager posture, wide eyes, and bright smile demanded a response from him. Sesshomaru didn't know why he should indulge her. He had no opinion on flowers, one way or another. They had no impact on his life, so why should he have an opinion on them?

Rin's smile dimmed as Sesshomaru's silence continued, and the shifting of her scent told him that if he did not respond somehow, she would quickly become sad, though he couldn't fathom why. "It's acceptable."

And just like that, Rin's smile was back in full force.

"Foolish girl!" Jaken squawked, bustling forward. "Don't waste Lord Sesshomaru's time with trivialities like flowers!"

Rin blinked and cocked her head to the side. "But he's not doing anything else," she pointed out, not cowed by Jaken's blustering. "We're just walking. He can walk and look at flowers at the same time, right?"

"Lord Sesshomaru was obviously thinking!"

"About what?"

"Well, that – that is not important for you to know!"

"Sounds like you don't know if he was thinking or not."

Sesshomaru tuned out their bickering as unimportant and continued walking. He had been thinking, before Rin's interruption, but as they were the same thoughts that had consumed him for the past several days it wasn't hard to pick them back up again.

 _Kagome almost killed me._

It was maddening to admit, that a mere half breed mutt had almost killed him. Would have killed him, had Tenseiga not saved him from the wind scar's power. It was galling, that he had been saved by the useless sword he'd never wanted.

But then, that was why he'd listened to it when Tenseiga had expressed the desire to revive Rin after the wolves had killed her. Tenseiga had saved him. Sesshomaru allowed it to save Rin. That was all. And it didn't matter.

What mattered was that Kagome could now use Tetsusaiga's wind scar. Which meant that not only had Tetsusaiga refused him as its wielder, it had _chosen_ Kagome. His father's most powerful weapon, his greatest legacy, preferred an illegitimate half breed over the Inu no Taisho's heir.

 _You have chosen poorly, Tetsusaiga._

And Sesshomaru would prove it. How, exactly, he wasn't sure. Merely killing Kagome was not enough. It was not the proper revenge, as Tetsusaiga's slight was far greater than Kagome's. Her insults would not even have been possible if it weren't for Tetsusaiga.

Sesshomaru pinned that thought in his mind. _What if Kagome did not have Tetsusaiga?_ Sesshomaru did not wish it for himself, not anymore. The sword's choice of master was far too insulting for Sesshomaru to deign to try and make it his again. But just because Sesshomaru did not want it did not mean he had to let Kagome – or anyone else – have Tetsusaiga either.

 _I will destroy the Tetsusaiga._

Kagome was weak. She wouldn't be able to defend the sword. But the Tetsusaiga would not break easily, even with a pathetic master. After all, it was a sword forged of his father's fang. It would take a weapon of immense power to even stand a chance of breaking it.

 _Totosai will never forge a weapon for me._

The batty old swordsmith only made weapons for those demons he liked. He feared Sesshomaru, but fear would never be enough to get Totosai to make anything for him. But Totosai was not the only swordsmith around, even if he had always been the Inu no Taisho's first choice. There were others to choose from, and they would be willing to do what Sesshomaru wanted.

In fact, there was one in particular that came to Sesshomaru's mind, an old apprentice of Totosai's. He remembered hearing Totosai tell his father about that one, the apprentice that had showed so much promise, but that Totosai had had to turn away, because the weapons he made were too dark, too thirsty for blood.

What a ridiculous notion. How could a weapon be too thirsty for blood? That's precisely what they were made for, to shed the blood of others.

His father had approved of Totosai's decision.

"Rin, Jaken. Ride Ah Un."

He took to the air while they scrambled to obey him, setting a course for the home of Kaijinbo. He would obtain a weapon that was capable of destroying Tetsusaiga. He would prove that the sword had made the wrong decision.

Sesshomaru was not confused.

* * *

Since they'd left the mountain the afternoon before, their trip back to the village had been very boring, and that, Kagome was finding, was just how she wanted things to go right now. They'd had more than enough excitement lately. A boring calm sounded perfect.

So when Ginta stopped walking, sniffing the air, dread curled in the pit of Kagome's stomach. "What is it?"

"I smell smoke," Ginta said. "More than any village would justify."

Kagome frowned and scented the air herself. Now that Ginta mentioned it, she noticed the tang of smoke as well, though it was faint enough to her that she wouldn't have pegged it as anything unusual. But wolf demons were known for their sense of smell, even more than dog demons were, so Ginta was probably right. She looked at Inuyasha. "Do you sense any jewel shards?"

Inuyasha shook his head. "None. So whatever it is, it probably doesn't have anything to do with Naraku."

Kagome tapped her fingers against Tetsusaiga's hilt. If there really was that much smoke, it meant something bad had happened, or was in the process of happening. "It's probably nothing. You guys keep going, I'll go check it out and then catch up to you."

She saw Ginta glance at her sideways, but ignored him. She knew that wolf demons could smell a lie, the same way full blooded dog demons could. But he didn't call her out on it. Kagome hadn't expected him to, not when she was telling a lie that would keep Inuyasha out of harm's way. Because either there was something she could do about whatever was going on, or there wasn't. Whatever the case was, there was no point in giving Inuyasha reason to have more nightmares, not if there weren't any jewel shards involved.

"No way," Inuyasha said. "You're not going alone. Not if it might be dangerous."

"I'll be fine," Kagome said. "It'll be quicker this way."

"I agree with Inuyasha," Miroku said. "You should certainly have backup."

"Thank you!" Inuyasha said.

"So I will accompany you while the other three continue on."

"Wait, what?" Inuyasha glared daggers at the monk. "Why just you? Why not the whole group?"

Miroku patted Inuyasha's shoulder. "Think of it as us giving you, Ginta, and Shippo bonding time."

" _Bonding time_ -!"

Kagome decided it would be better to make her exit while Inuyasha was still sputtering, and it wouldn't hurt to have Miroku with her. If nothing else, he could say prayers for the dead they were likely to find. Wrapping an arm around Miroku's waist, Kagome jumped into the trees, hopping from branch to branch while Inuyasha shouted behind them. Once they were far enough away that his shouting had faded away, Kagome paused so that Miroku could get into the more secure position of riding piggy back.

"He's going to figure it out eventually you know," Miroku said. "He's dense, but he's not completely stupid. He'll realize what you're doing once he calms down enough to think about it, and he won't be pleased."

"I don't care," Kagome said. "I'm going to protect him."

"Protect him from reality? From the fact that terrible things happen? From the fact that he may have to do terrible things himself in the fight to stop Naraku?"

"Yes!"

Miroku sighed. "Kagome. That'll never last. Not with our mission."

Kagome didn't argue with him. There wasn't any point to arguing with him. But she hadn't changed her mind. Because Inuyasha wasn't like everyone else. Like Miroku had pointed out before, Inuyasha was naïve. He didn't accept terrible things as the course of the world, and when he saw them he thought he should be able to do something about them, even though sometimes you just couldn't.

Kagome liked that about him. There was hope in the way he saw things, and she didn't want him to lose that. Kagome wanted Inuyasha to be right. But Kagome wasn't sure how many more terrible things Inuyasha could handle seeing and still keep that innocence intact, so she would shelter him from them whenever she could.

Scents other than smoke reached Kagome's nose, and she tensed.

"What is it?" Miroku asked.

"I smell blood, a lot of it." Her ears perked up, catching distant sounds. "And whoever did the killing is still there."

"Perhaps we should get the others," Miroku said.

Kagome picked up speed. "No time. If there are any survivors still, they can't afford to wait."

The woods ended, opening up into cultivated fields and giving Kagome an easy view of what had once been a relatively prosperous town. Several of the buildings were ablaze, black smoke billowing into the air. Bodies were scattered across the ground, some groaning with pain, most completely still. Men moved about the town, rounding up stragglers and dragging women toward the center of the town.

 _Bandits._

And something more, Kagome realized as she picked up a distinctive scent through the stench of smoke, and death, and fear.

"Kagome," Miroku said, "I'm sensing a demon."

"I can smell it." She paused just long enough for Miroku to slide off her back and then sprinted into the town. Startled cries came up from the bandits she streaked past, but Kagome ignored them for now. Her main target was going to be their demon leader, whoever he was.

 _There!_

He made himself easy to spot, riding tall on a white horse and holding an improbably large battle axe. Unsheathing Tetsusaiga, Kagome lunged for him. He managed to block her strike with a sharp clang of metal on metal, shoving Kagome back.

"It's rude to attack someone without introducing yourself first," the demon said.

Kagome didn't bother replying. There were injured that needed immediate treatment, and the longer she took fighting this guy the more of them that would die. There was no time to waste on petty banter with some lowlife bandit.

She jumped at him again, and he raised the axe once more to block her. But Kagome had expected that, and as she'd planned Tetsusaiga sliced through the handle of the battle axe, causing the axe head to tumble to the ground, slicing into the horse on its way down. Kagome landed on the other side of the horse as the animal reared in pain, forcing its off balanced rider to jump off or fall.

Kagome's ear twitched as nearby sounds of fighting alerted her to Miroku's arrival. She didn't check on him, trusting Miroku to handle himself. Kagome rushed the demon, but he dodged her attack, showing more agility than she'd expected. Whirling about after him, Kagome froze, every muscle in her body going rigid. The demon had grabbed one of the human women, holding her in front of his body as a living shield. The woman's wide eyes locked onto Kagome, and a whimper escaped from her as the demon's hand on her throat visibly tightened.

"I'm curious," the demon said, his voice calm and conversational as if he wasn't slowly choking the life out of a woman. "Will you attack me with an innocent in the way?"

Tetsusaiga seemed to hum with Kagome's fury. "Let her go!"

He arched an eyebrow at her, lips turning up in an amused smile. "So, you can speak. I was beginning to wonder."

Kagome snarled at him. _Monster!_ She couldn't attack, not without killing the woman, but if she did nothing the demon would surely kill her just for his own amusement. Then suddenly he threw the woman at her. Startled, Kagome dropped Tetsusaiga to avoid impaling the woman. Then the woman hit her, and Kagome's arms curled about her in an automatic protective hold. The demon appeared behind the woman, and he breathed a cloud of dust in Kagome's face. Instantly, Kagome's eyes watered and burned, effectively blinding her. Her throat and lungs burned from inhaling it, and Kagome barely had time to register that the dust was poison before a blow to her face sent her flying. She hit the ground hard, but managed to keep the woman from landing directly on the ground. Kagome realized the gesture had been futile as she felt the woman thrashing weakly, and heard her wheezing gasps for air.

Kagome shoved the woman to the side and rolled to her feet in the opposite direction. No time for sentiment for a woman that was guaranteed to die. _This guy's poison is almost as bad as Sesshomaru's._ She could feel her face beginning to blister already. She couldn't see and she could barely smell, so Kagome would have to rely on her ears for this fight. She was at a further disadvantage because she wasn't sure where exactly she had dropped Tetsusaiga and had no way of finding it.

The demon laughed, apparently thinking that Kagome was at enough of a disadvantage now that he could take his time with her.

 _I hope he's not right._

Kagome could hear Miroku fighting his way closer to her, but it would take him a few moments to reach her. He hadn't used his wind tunnel yet for the same reason Kagome hadn't used her wind scar; there were too many innocents mixed up in the area, and the chance of hurting them was too high. _The way this fight is going, we might not have a choice._

"Enjoying the taste of my poison, little puppy?" the demon asked.

"I've had worse," Kagome said. "A second class demon like you isn't that threatening."

Pounding footsteps, he was rushing her. Kagome tried to dodge, but misjudged, and something sliced across her abdomen. Whatever weapon he'd used hadn't cut deep, but it didn't need to. The burning pain that accompanied it told her that it was poisoned. Kagome stumbled back, already feeling her limbs begin to drag as the poison quickly worked its way through her system.

"Kagome, look out!"

She couldn't see what danger was coming, couldn't gather the strength to dodge even if she could see it. Then she felt Miroku's arms circle around her, his chest pressed against her back, and she sensed the flare of his spiritual power that set her teeth on edge even though Kagome knew he'd never use it to hurt her.

The flare of his power steadied and thrummed in her senses instead of fading away. "What's happened?" she asked, leaning back against him. She shouldn't lean against him, Kagome knew that, she'd only hinder him if he needed to move. But it was either lean or fall over, and Miroku wasn't moving at all. He stayed curled protectively around her.

"It would seem we're dealing with a moth demon," Miroku said. He kept his voice calm, but Kagome could tell from the pounding of his heart that he was anything but. "One that can create a poisonous cocoon."

That explained what Miroku was doing. "He's got us trapped. Can you get us out?"

"All I can do is keep the barrier going, and I'm not sure how long it'll last," Miroku said. "I think next time we shouldn't split the group."

 _If there is a next time._

She was poisoned, blinded, and almost completely unable to move. If she had time, Kagome could recover, could know what she was up against, could fight smarter. But she didn't have time. She only had however long Miroku could keep the barrier going, and that wouldn't be long enough. As soon as the barrier failed, they would both die. And when she and Miroku failed to return, Inuyasha and the others would come looking for them, with no idea what they were about to stumble into. Which meant they would probably die as well.

 _No. No I've failed them all._

Her breath quickened. There had to be a way out of this. There _had_ to be!

 _I refuse to die!_

* * *

Miroku's grip on his staff tightened as he tried to ignore the way the poisonous cocoon pressed in on his barrier. The constant assault on his power meant he would only be able to keep the barrier up for mere minutes. When it failed, he and Kagome would quickly die.

 _Perhaps I can suck it into the wind tunnel?_

It might work, but it would probably also guarantee his death given how badly the poison had affected Kagome. Even if Miroku could free Kagome, she was so badly injured he doubted she would be able to escape from the moth demon anyway. It seemed their only hope at this point was to pray that Inuyasha had succeeded in badgering Ginta into following them. Inuyasha had enough power that he could probably destroy the cocoon and save them. _Assuming they make it past the moth demon of course. Assuming they come in time to save us._

Kagome's energy pulsed, adding pressure to Miroku's barrier and making it harder to keep it in place. "Kagome! What are you doing?"

She didn't answer with words, but a low growl rumbled through her chest. The pressure from her energy increased, and the feel of her presence began to shift. Normally Kagome felt like a steady heartbeat, her power rising and falling in reliable order. Now it just rose, an angry inferno, fraying Miroku's barrier.

"Kagome!"

Her energy surged again, and Miroku went flying through the air. He landed hard, the air knocked from his lungs. Miroku struggled into a kneeling position. The bandits and townspeople had all drawn back, and for good reason. Kagome's explosive burst of power had shredded the cocoon and left her changed. Her eyes were no longer gold and white, but green and blood red. A jagged, purple stripe painted her blistered cheeks, and her fangs and claws were noticeably bigger. But the biggest difference was in her expression. Kagome's face was twisted with such rage and bloodlust, she was almost unrecognizable.

Kagome charged the moth demon before any of the bandits had time to recover from their surprise. He managed to dodge, but Kagome kept pressing the attack, keeping him on the defensive.

 _She feels like a full blooded demon. But that's impossible!_

Impossible or not, that's what Miroku's senses were telling him. She was certainly faster than she'd ever been before. Kagome was always fast in a fight, but now she was almost too fast for Miroku's eye to follow. But whatever she may have gained in speed, Kagome seemed to have lost in tactics. There was no finesse in her attacks, no strategy. She didn't even attempt to retrieve her sword. She clawed at the moth demon wildly, as though trying to overcome him by brute strength and speed alone.

 _It's working._

The moth demon was on the defensive, trying to get away from her, but she was too fast for him to successfully disengage from the fight.

Bandits shouted, some running toward the fight, some running away, while the townswomen screamed and huddled away for cover. But over all the noise rang a different sound, one that stood out all the more because it was so out of place. Wild and high, the sound of laughter floated through the air, chilling Miroku to his very bones.

 _She's laughing. Kagome is in the middle of a fight, and she's_ laughing.

It was wrong. Something was wrong with Kagome and Miroku had no idea how he was going to fix it, or if it even could be fixed.

The moth demon cried out as Kagome finally got through his defenses to land a blow. Miroku could see it was a crippling blow, and with one more slash of her claws Kagome opened the moth demon's throat, sending him tumbling to the ground.

With the death of their leader, the bandits that had stayed to the end of the fight lost their courage and made a dash for their horses to flee. Kagome whirled around, her lips pulled back in a wide grin, and Miroku knew what she was going to do.

"Kagome, no!"

There was no point in killing the bandits, not when they were trying to flee. But Kagome didn't seem to hear him, dashing off after the bandits. Miroku ran towards them, but he knew it was useless. He would never have been able to catch up with her, even if she hadn't been faster than normal.

The bandits screamed as she appeared among them, a whirlwind of claws. Miroku skidded to a stop. The bandits were as good as dead now, and he needed a plan.

" _Kagome!_ "

Miroku's head jerked around at the sound. There, at the edge of the town were Inuyasha, Ginta, and Shippo. It would seem Inuyasha had badgered Ginta into following them after all.


	20. Chapter 20

Kagome's Soul Devoured

Part 2

 _This doesn't make any sense!_ Inuyasha's mind scrambled for some kind of explanation for what he was seeing, but he was coming up blank. The Kagome he knew wouldn't murder people who were trying to run away from her. She _wouldn't_.

But he couldn't deny what he saw either, and he had just watched her slaughter men that were trying to run from her. Inuyasha couldn't understand why.

" _Kagome!_ "

She whirled about to face them, and Inuyasha sucked in a breath at the sight. She'd been injured; she had a large cut over her abdomen, and her face bubbled with blisters. Maybe whatever had blistered her face was also responsible for making her eyes blood red, but it couldn't explain the jagged purple stripe on each cheek, or the noticeably larger claws and fangs, or the way her presence blazed like a full demon's rather than the comforting pulse of a half demon.

Her gaze slid over him and Shippo, and settled on Ginta instead. With a snarl Kagome lunged for him, and Ginta dashed forward to meet her charge, ducking under her wild swings to knock her back away from Inuyasha and Shippo before leaping back himself to try and keep distance between them.

"What is going on?" Inuyasha demanded as Miroku joined them.

"I don't know," Miroku said, his eyes glued to Kagome and Ginta. The wolf demon remained on the defensive, trying to avoid Kagome's swings without actually fighting back. "But she isn't herself. She seems determined to kill anyone she perceives as a threat."

Which apparently included people trying to run away from her, and allies who hadn't done anything but show up.

"How do we stop her?" Inuyasha asked.

Miroku pulled out a sutra and held it out towards him. "This should freeze her, if you can get it into contact with her. I've already expended much of my own energy already."

That was enough explanation for now. "Shippo, stay with Miroku," Inuyasha said as he snatched the sutra from Miroku. Shippo jumped from his shoulders as Inuyasha dashed towards the fight. Kagome didn't seem to notice his approach, but Ginta did.

Ginta glanced in Inuyasha's direction then back at Kagome as she jumped at him. Instead of dodging, Ginta caught her wrists instead, and the impact sent both of them tumbling through the dirt. Kagome ended up on top, but Ginta had managed to keep hold of her wrists and was attempting to keep her at arm's length while holding her in place for Inuyasha at the same time.

Inuyasha sprinted forward and slapped the sutra on Kagome's back. Light flared from Inuyasha's fingertips as Kagome arched her back and screamed. Inuyasha jerked his hand away and took half a step back, torn between wanting to wanting to yank the sutra off her and the knowledge that it was probably the only thing stopping her from killing Ginta. The wolf demon shoved her off and jumped to his feet.

The scream melted into a snarl, and Kagome's now red and green eyes pinned Inuyasha in place. She pushed herself up off the ground, her movements achingly slow, but she was moving.

"I thought it was supposed to freeze her!" Inuyasha shouted.

"It is!" Miroku called back.

"It's not working!"

In a sudden burst of speed, Kagome swiped at him with her claws, but Ginta shoved him out of the way before grabbing Kagome's arm and throwing her through the side of one of the nearby buildings.

"Hey!" Inuyasha said sharply.

"She's trying to kill you," Ginta said. He shook his hands out. "That thing stings." Ginta looked back at Inuyasha. "We've got to figure out how to get her back to normal, or this isn't going to end well."

 _Get her back to normal? How can I get her back to normal when I don't even know what's happened to her in the first place?_

A familiar energy pulsed, and Inuyasha's head whipped around to see the Tetsusaiga laying on the ground a few feet away from him. It hadn't even registered to him before then that Kagome wasn't using her sword. _How did it pulse by itself?_

Kagome appeared in the hole she'd just been tossed through, snarling. Inuyasha could feel her energy blazing, pushing against the power held in the sutra; it was still managing to make Kagome's movements slow, but Inuyasha wasn't sure how long the sutra would last against the onslaught of her energy. It was reaching levels he'd never sensed from her before.

 _What do I do?_

Tetsusaiga pulsed again, with a feeling that was as sharp and insistent as Sensei in a bad mood. Quickly stepping over to it, Inuyasha snatched up the sword.

"What are you doing with that?" Ginta asked.

"I don't know," Inuyasha said. It wasn't like he could use Tetsusaiga; only half demons could do anything with the sword.

 _Kagome isn't a half demon right now._

Her approach picked up speed, going from a struggling walk to a jog, claws flexing in preparation for a blow. Ginta tensed, ready to fend her off again.

"Ginta, stay back!"

He glanced back at Inuyasha, eyes wide. Inuyasha sprinted past him toward Kagome. Clawed hands flew for his face, but Inuyasha ducked under the blow and rammed Tetsugaiga's hilt into Kagome's solar plexus.

The moment it came into contact with Kagome, Tetsusaiga pulsed with a rush of energy that made every hair on Inuyasha's body stand on end. He felt Kagome shudder, and then suddenly her surging energy plummeted.

Inuyasha looked up into her face and saw the red and green colors fading from her eyes. The jagged stripes on her cheeks vanished as though they had never existed. For the first time, she seemed to recognize him. She blinked, her once again golden eyes unfocused.

"Inu…yasha?"

Relief flooded Inuyasha, but only for a moment. Then Kagome's eyes closed as she passed out. Swearing, Inuyasha dropped Tetsusaiga to catch her, but the awkward angle meant he had to lay her down quickly.

Inuyasha could hear the others approaching now that Kagome was subdued, but he didn't pay them any mind. He yanked the sutra off her back and tossed it away. Now that she was still, Inuyasha could finally see that the front of her shirt was soaked with blood, and he pulled back the layers of cloth to see how bad the injury was. Bile rose in his throat at the sight the jagged cut, its enflamed, discolored edges leaking blood and a foul smelling puss.

"We need to go quickly," Miroku said.

Inuyasha glared up at him. "We can't just move her! She needs medical attention now!"

Miroku shook his head. "It's too dangerous here; not all the bandits were killed; if they get up enough courage to come back, we could be in trouble. Besides, after what they saw, I'm not sure the townspeople will be all that welcoming for us either."

He wanted to keep arguing, but Ginta ended the conversation by leaning down and scooping up Kagome in his arms. "Come on," Ginta said, setting a brisk pace away from the town. Inuyasha picked up Tetsusaiga again and followed.

"What happened?" Inuyasha demanded of Miroku.

"I'm not entirely sure where to start," Miroku said.

Shippo, still riding on Miroku's shoulder, tapped the top of Miroku's head with a small fist. "Start at the beginning!"

"Very well," Miroku said. "When Kagome and I arrived, a group of bandits was just finishing their attack on the town. But these bandits were being led by a moth demon. Kagome engaged the moth demon in battle, but it managed to blow a cloud of poison in Kagome's face, blinding her. It was after that that it injured Kagome's stomach, and that wound is poisoned too. Then it trapped us in a poison cocoon; I managed to get a barrier up, but it wasn't going to last long. By that time Kagome was mostly paralyzed by the poison, until…" Miroku's voice drifted off, his purple eyes sliding towards Kagome's limp form. "She changed. The change allowed her to escape from the cocoon, and then she killed the moth demon. And you saw the rest."

Inuyasha couldn't suppress a shiver. He still didn't understand what had happened to her, not really.

 _This would be a great time for Myoga to show up._ The flea demon would probably know what was going on, but the last they'd seen of Myoga was when he'd gone off with Totosai. There was no way of knowing where he was now or when he'd show up next.

They had to walk longer than Inuyasha would have liked before they were at a river that was well away from any village. Ginta laid her down near the river, and Miroku immediately set to tending her wounds. Shippo jumped into Inuyasha's arms to stay out of Miroku's way. Inuyasha hovered; he didn't know enough about medicine to help, but he wasn't willing to walk away either.

Her injuries still looked awful, as though they hadn't even begun to heal at all yet. _The poison must be slowing her healing down._ "She'll be okay, won't she?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Hopefully the poison will work itself out of her system soon," Miroku replied without looking up.

Inuyasha tightened his grip on Testusaiga. That wasn't a real answer.

Ginta gently bumped Inuyasha with his shoulder. "Demons are tough. We can usually survive anything that doesn't kill us outright. I'm sure half demons are the same."

When Miroku had done all he could, he bandaged Kagome's injuries and sat back on his heels, finally looking up at them. "I suggest we camp out here for the night. I don't feel up to walking much farther, and it's probably best for Kagome if we don't move her too much right now."

Which left Inuyasha with nothing to do but sit and wait, and hope that soon Kagome would wake up. _I hate being useless!_

Shippo tugged at Inuyasha's collar, distracting him from his frustrations. "I'm hungry," Shippo said, his voice more subdued than typical.

Inuyasha realized that it was well past the time they would have typically stopped for lunch. He didn't have much of an appetite – his stomach was too tied up in knots for that – but Shippo was just a kid and ought to eat something.

"Okay, Shippo," Inuyasha said. "We'll fix something."

Of course at this point in their trip, Inuyasha was out of his easy to prepare supply of instant ramen. Sango and Kagome usually handled anything that required actual cooking. Inuyasha turned to Miroku. "Um, can you cook?"

Miroku nodded. "If you could gather the firewood, I'll cook. Ginta, do you think you could catch us some fish?"

"Sure thing," Ginta said.

Inuyasha crouched down, gingerly placing the Tetsusaiga beside Kagome. He paused there for a moment, staring at her blistered face. _If only we'd been there from the start, this might not have happened._ Reluctantly, Inuyasha pulled himself away tend to his work.

* * *

 _Everything hurts._ Kagome was used to feeling pain, but it didn't usually linger so, making her feel sluggish and heavy. _What happened?_ She remembered they had been traveling, and then she and Miroku had broken away from the group to investigate what was happening at that town.

Memories of the fight crashed back all at once, and with a gasp Kagome shot up into a sitting position. Her sudden movement made the injury on her stomach flare with pain, but Kagome didn't care.

"Hey, whoa, slow down!"

Hands gripped her shoulders holding her still. Kagome blinked her eyes bringing Inuyasha's face into focus. A quick glance assured her that he wasn't hurt. "Is everyone okay?" She remembered attacking them, but some of the details were fuzzy.

"We're fine," Inuyasha said. "You're the one that's hurt, so don't move around, okay?"

Kagome closed her eyes, tension leaving her body as she was flooded with relief. _I didn't hurt them._ She was glad for that at least, especially given what she could remember doing to the bandits.

It wasn't so much the fact that she had killed the bandits that bothered Kagome; they had been evil men, and any that had escaped her would likely go on and continue to do evil things. But the way she had killed them chilled Kagome to her very soul. They had been terrified, and she had relished their fear. She could remember the way it felt for her claws to slice through their flesh, and the thrill it had given her.

 _I can still smell their blood on me._

It made her feel sick.

"Kagome."

The sound of Inuyasha's voice made her open her eyes again.

"Kagome, what happened to you?"

"I – I'm not sure."

Inuyasha let go of her – perhaps finally reassured that she wasn't going to move anymore – and he sat down beside her. Shippo scampered over into his lap, while Ginta and Miroku drew closer as well.

"While we were in the cocoon," Miroku said, "it seemed as though you somehow transformed into a full demon."

When they'd been trapped in the cocoon, Kagome had been sure they were about to die. Then she'd felt a rush of power like nothing she'd ever experience before, and that was when she'd lost all control.

"I've been thinking," Miroku continued, "and I think you transformation may have been triggered by your injuries and our desperate situation."

Kagome shook her head. "It's not the first time I've been in a life or death fight."

"It's the first time since I've known you that you've gotten this hurt," Inuyasha snapped, surprising Kagome with the harshness in his tone, especially since he'd spoken so gently to her before. Kagome glanced over at him, and sure enough his brows were drawn and his hands were clenched in fists. "Your injuries don't look like they've even started healing yet."

Well, since she was no longer blind or paralyzed, she had started to recover at least some. But Kagome was pretty sure that the poison wasn't totally out of her system yet. "I'll be better by morning," Kagome said to placate him. He opened his mouth to argue, but Kagome hurried on, "How did you snap me out of it?"

"Inuyasha hit you with Tetsusaiga," Ginta said. "The sword changed you back."

"Oh," Kagome said, her fingers curling around the sword beside her. "That…makes sense."

"I don't get it," Shippo said. "How did the sword fix you?"

"Tetsusaiga rejects the touch of full demons," Kagome said. "So it makes sense that Tetsusaiga would be able to suppress the…transformation."

"If that's the case, then that means the only way to be certain it doesn't happen again is to make sure that you never let the Tetsusaiga get far away from you," Miroku said.

 _Is this why Father left me the Tetsusaiga? Did he know that this might happen?_

Kagome had wondered sometimes why he'd left the sword to her and not to Sesshomaru, who was after all the Inu no Taisho's eldest child and heir. Not that she hadn't been glad to have Tetsusaiga, but she'd wondered.

"I've got another idea," Inuyasha said. "How about next time, we don't split up the group! If we'd all been there, the situation might never have gotten that bad."

"We had no way to know it was going to be dangerous," Kagome defended.

"Yeah, you did," Ginta said. Kagome glared at him, but he didn't back down. "You were lying when you said you thought it might be nothing; you knew it was going to be dangerous from the start." Ginta sighed. "I just wish we'd followed quicker. But I didn't guess it'd be that bad."

"You were planning to follow us from the start?" Kagome stared at Ginta, thrown by this sudden revelation.

"Splitting up the group is almost always a bad idea." Ginta crossed his arms over his chest as he spoke. "It seemed like it would be easier to just follow you instead of arguing about it though. I'm with Inuyasha on this one; unless we know what we're getting into, we shouldn't split up."

Before Kagome could formulate a response to that, Inuyasha jumped in. "Wait a second! You _knew_ you were running into something dangerous? Why would you want to leave us behind in a situation like that? It isn't like Ginta and I are helpless, and Shippo knows how to keep out of the way in a fight. What were you thinking?"

He glared at her, and Kagome looked away as she scrambled to come up with a response. She couldn't tell him that it was because she didn't want him to have any more nightmares than he had to. She couldn't say it was because she wanted to spare Inuyasha from the pain he felt when he saw others suffering and there was nothing he could do to help. Because Miroku was right about one thing at least; Inuyasha wouldn't be okay with any of those reasons.

"Given what Ginta was describing, I didn't think there'd be anyone left to help," Kagome said. "I figured it would be quicker for one or two people to check it out rather than diverting the whole group."

"You're lying," Ginta said.

"Why don't you just keep out of it? It's none of your business anyway!"

"It's all of our business," Inuyasha said, jumping in to Ginta's defense. "Why can't you just – "

Inuyasha's abrupt stop distracted Kagome from glaring at Ginta. She looked over and found him staring at her, an unreadable expression on his face. "It's because of me," he said flatly. "You didn't want me in danger."

Kagome wanted to protest, but lying would be useless at this point. "I really didn't think there would be anyone we could help, and if there wasn't…"

"You didn't want me to see more dead people," Inuyasha finished for her. "Well, since I had to watch you go insane and murder people, that didn't really work out now did it?"

Kagome flinched at the venom in his voice. "Inuyasha – "

"Don't talk to me."

Her jaw snapped shut, biting back the justifications she wanted to offer. Inuyasha set Shippo aside before standing and walking away from the group. Kagome watched him go, wanting to run after him, but knowing it was useless.

"Kagome," Miroku said when Inuyasha was out of sight.

"Shut up, Miroku," Kagome snapped. She stood quickly, ignoring the protests from her injuries. "Just shut up."

Whirling around, she walked in the opposite direction.

* * *

Miroku sighed; that confrontation had come sooner and gone worse than he'd expected it to.

Shippo drew near. "Um, they're both coming back, right?"

Miroku forced a smile for Shippo's benefit. "Of course, Shippo." And they would. Neither of them had much of a choice, after all. But whether their relationship would recover to where it had been before…well, that was another question entirely.

"So, before I go after Inuyasha," Ginta said. "I feel like I'm missing some context. Why was Kagome so determined to keep him out of fights? I mean, he's a warrior, and a priest. That's what he does, isn't it?"

"It's a rather complicated tale," Miroku said. "And one you should learn from Inuyasha, really."

Ginta rolled his eyes. "Right. Because talking to me is his favorite thing to do."

Miroku really did smile at that, though it was rather wry. _So he didn't miss that Inuyasha was avoiding him._ Not that Inuyasha had been terribly subtle about it. "You're growing on him. It takes Inuyasha time to adjust to new people."

"So, details," Ginta persisted. "Before I go and make him angrier. Short version."

 _Why not? He's going to find out eventually._ And it probably would help Ginta to know where Kagome was coming from in her actions. "Very well, the short version. Inuyasha is from five hundred years in the future, and he came back in time by accident, after which it was discovered that he was the reincarnation of the priestess Kikyo, and the Shikon Jewel was broken. So now he's on a quest to recover the jewel and stop Naraku, while periodically taking breaks to visit his family in the future. The future is a much more peaceful time, so before coming here Inuyasha had never been in a life and death fight, and it has been a difficult adjustment for him to see the harsh realities of our time, to the point where he often has nightmares after our fights. Kagome wasn't worried about him getting physically harmed, but she wanted to protect him emotionally."

Ginta stared at him, hard. "Okay. I'm going to need the long version."

 _Thought you might._

Miroku still didn't go into as much detail as he could have, but he did sketch out the basics of their adventures, and the reactions that Inuyasha had had to them. Of course Inuyasha wasn't aware of how much they knew about his reactions and nightmares; he'd been trying to hide it, and out of respect they'd never brought up. But Inuyasha's gasps and groans from his dreams had woken all of them up at one point or another, even if they'd never mentioned it. Inuyasha wouldn't appreciate Miroku telling Ginta everything, but he needed to know what he was dealing with if he was going to be of any help.

"So you're telling me that Inuyasha's only just been blooded?"

"Pretty much," Miroku said.

Ginta groaned. "We thought he was experienced! But wait, when he met Koga, was that the first time…?"

"That he'd ever seen a wholesale slaughter? Yes."

Ginta buried his head in his hands. "Of course. Great. _Worst_ adoption ever." Ginta lifted his head and stared at Shippo. "Does he know that he's adopted you?"

Miroku blinked and looked at Shippo, who fidgeted nervously. "Um, we've never really talked about it."

 _I guess that explains Shippo's favoritism._

Ginta swore under his breath. "When we get back to the den, I'm letting _Koga_ handle this mess!" He stood and held out a hand towards Shippo. "Come on, nephew. We'd better catch up with Inuyasha before he manages to find even more trouble."

Shippo's mouth worked for a moment, and then he grinned, jumping at Ginta and settling himself on the wolf's shoulder the same way he did with Inuyasha. Then the two headed off after Inuyasha.

 _I guess that leaves me to handle Kagome._

He wished Sango was there to talk to her. Kagome wasn't likely to be happy to see Miroku, not after their last few conversations. She might be more open to listening to someone else's advice. But Sango wasn't there to talk to her, and clearly Kagome needed to talk to someone. Using his staff to help himself to his feet, Miroku went after her.

He found her secluded in a tree, half hidden by leafy branches. Leaning his staff against the trunk, Miroku reached up to a low limb and pulled himself up until he was sitting near her. "You know, I can't remember the last time I climbed a tree," Miroku said, settling himself in comfortably. "I see why you do. It's nice up here." Closing his eyes, Miroku leaned back and waited.

"Aren't you going to lecture me?" Kagome finally asked.

"I don't see why I should," Miroku said. He opened one and glanced in her direction. "It likely wouldn't be near as harsh as what you've been telling yourself."

Kagome met his stare for only a moment before looking away, but that moment was enough for Miroku to note the tears in her eyes. "I was only trying to protect him."

"Forgive me for stating the obvious, but Kagome, you're not his mother."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Opening both eyes, Miroku looked at her fully. "It means it's not your job to protect him. If he needs your help, then by all means help him, but let Inuyasha grow up. If you don't, he'll only come to resent you."

Kagome bit her lip and looked down. "Do you think I've ruined everything?"

"I don't know," Miroku said. "But I know Inuyasha cares about you a lot. It's hard to picture him holding a grudge against you for very long."

Kagome didn't say anything to that, she just sat in the tree, one leg swinging off the side. "Can we just sit here for a while?"

"Sounds like a plan to me."

* * *

Inuyasha didn't have a particular place in mind that he wanted to go, he just knew that he wanted to get _away_. He needed space if he was going to have any chance of untangling the knotted mess of his thoughts. Finding out that Kagome didn't trust him, didn't think he was strong enough to have her back, had shaken him, and he almost wished that something would attack, because Inuyasha felt desperate need to punch something.

"Inuyasha!"

He paused long enough to look back and see Ginta and Shippo approaching. "Leave me alone."

"Inuyasha, we need to talk," Ginta insisted.

"I don't want to talk about it."

Ginta grabbed his shoulder, and Inuyasha's power, which had been simmering just under the surface of his anger flared, causing Ginta to yank his hand back with a hiss of pain. Instantly Inuysha's temper cooled. "Ginta, are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

Ginta waved off his concern. "I'm fine." He frowned at his hand for a second. "But you're going to want to get that under control. Won't be good for you to lose your temper around pups."

Inuyasha wasn't sure what puppies had to do with anything, but Ginta was right that he couldn't lose control like that. "Sorry," he said again.

"Anyway," Ginta said. "I'm not here to talk about Kagome."

That caught Inuyasha off guard. "You're not?"

"Nope. Tribe business comes first."

"What kind of tribe business?"

"Well, I'm not going to deal with the fact that you're apparently from five hundred years in the future. Koga is the one that adopted you, so he can deal with that mess and how the adoption gifts should get worked out."

Inuyasha gaped at Ginta's suddenly display of knowledge he shouldn't have had. "Wha-how do you know about that?"

"Miroku told him," Shippo pipped up.

Of. Course. Because why wouldn't Miroku spill that secret to Ginta?

"Wait," Inuyasha said. "If that's not what you want to talk about, then what is?" He couldn't think of any other tribe business they might have.

"First, I want to know if you realize that you've adopted Shippo."

"I – what?"

Shippo suddenly seemed shy, ducking his head and crouching down closer to Ginta. The wolf demon absently reached up and patted Shippo's head as he sighed. "I didn't think so."

But when had he – and _how_ had he adopted Shippo? They'd never done anything close to a blood ceremony like what Inuyasha had done with Koga.

 _I did promise his father I'd take care of him._

Back on that first day he'd met Shippo, after they'd buried his father's pelt, Inuyasha had vowed to look after Shippo. After making that vow, he'd thought he'd seen the ghostly image of a fox, but the image had been so faint and so brief that he'd chalked it up to being his imagination. Suddenly Inuyasha wasn't so sure about that.

 _I think I need to sit down._

Lacking a convenient seat, Inuyasha settled for slumping back against a nearby tree.

"I wish we'd have realized before we left," Ginta said. "If we had we could have left Shippo with the tribe where he'd be safe."

That snapped Inuyasha out of his shock. "No way. I'm not leaving Shippo anywhere."

"He'd be safer with the tribe," Ginta contended. "I wouldn't say anything if he wasn't yours, but a mission like this is way too dangerous for a kit."

Shippo straightened from his crouch, tail puffed up with indignation. "Hey! I'm not a weakling!" He jumped from Ginta's shoulder, pulling a small statue out of his vest and tossing it at Ginta as he did so. Ginta caught the statue, which immediately grew in size, pulling Ginta to the ground and trapping his hand underneath. Shippo jumped into Inuyasha's arms, a smirk of satisfaction crossing his face as Ginta uselessly tried to free himself. Inuyasha couldn't stop his own wry grin at Ginta's predicament.

"Shippo's got some tricks that come in handy," Inuyasha said.

Ginta grunted, tugging at his hand again. "Yeah, okay, I can see that. Would you let me up?"

"Only if you promise you won't try to leave me anywhere," Shippo said.

Ginta rolled his eyes. "Okay, fine, I promise I won't try to leave you anywhere."

Apparently satisfied by the promise, Shippo hopped down and tapped the statue, returning it to it's smaller size and freeing Ginta's hand. Once free, Ginta stood again.

"Now that that conversation is out of the way, we need to talk about the fact that _you_ aren't a seasoned warrior like we thought."

Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably, straightening from his position against the tree. He wanted to argue, but he really couldn't. Sure he'd trained most of his life with Sensei, but that had been for sport. Sport that he loved and was good at, but still sport. He'd never fought for his life before coming to the past, and that was something different.

"That doesn't matter," he said. "I'm still the best shot that we have at finding Naraku since I'm the only one who can sense jewel shards."

Ginta shook his head. "It does matter, and until you're more experienced it's going to change the way the group fights. Look, I don't agree with Kagome's decision to leave us behind completely, but she's right that for now you don't need to be on the front lines of any fight. At least not until you've got a better handle on your abilities. Sending you out unprepared is a good way to get you killed."

Inuyasha bristled at the mention of Kagome. "I'm not too weak to handle things!"

"Maybe not, but you are inexperienced. That can be just as dangerous. That means you need to listen to those of us that have experience so you can stay alive to learn."

Inuyasha scowled, frustrated that Ginta's reasoning made sense. But his reasoning didn't excuse Kagome's actions. By leaving the rest of them behind, she'd almost gotten herself and Miroku killed. Almost gotten all of them killed actually, because if they hadn't been able to think of a way to stop her, Kagome would have kept fighting until she'd killed them. Inuyasha wasn't ready to forgive her for that.

But what Kagome had done wasn't Ginta's fault, so there was no point in taking his frustration out on the wolf demon. Instead, Inuyasha reluctantly agreed with him. "Fine. I'll be careful."

"Good," Ginta said. "Now, come on."

"Where?" Inuyasha asked, caught off guard by the sudden order.

"I noticed an area that was big enough for sparring," Ginta said. "It's a pretty good stress relief, don't you think?"

Tension left Inuyasha's shoulders as he started to follow Ginta. "Yeah, that sounds good."


	21. Chapter 21

Kikyo and Inuyasha

Sesshomaru approached Kaijinbo's lair alone. Jaken had grumbled at being left behind, but it wasn't as though there had been another option, not with Rin around. Sesshomaru didn't care for humans, but Rin was – however reluctantly – his responsibility now. He wasn't about to carelessly reveal the existence of such a liability to others sooner than he had to, and certainly not to someone like Kaijinbo, who wasn't really known for his tact. Not that Sesshomaru was incapable of protecting her if any enemies decided to try and get to Sesshomaru by targeting her, but it would be annoying. Better to keep Rin out of sight for now.

Kaijinbo lived off the beaten path, like most demon swordsmiths. His home was small and dilapidated, and were Sesshomaru relying only on his eyes, he'd assume the place was abandoned. But Sesshomaru could hear movement inside the house, so he didn't pause in his approach, brushing aside the reed mat that covered the doorway.

Kaijinbo wasn't startled by Sesshomaru's abrupt appearance. He stood, setting aside the bowl of whatever breakfast he'd been eating. "Well, well, what brings the great Lord Sesshomaru to my doorstep?"

Sesshomaru heard the tinge of mockery in Kaijinbo's voice, but chose to ignore it for now. "I wish to commission a sword, one that can rival the Tetsusaiga." He paused for a moment. "Unless of course you do not believe yourself capable of forging such a sword."

Kaijinbo's dark eyes gleamed. "Ah, the Tetsusaiga. One of Totosai's greatest creations. But then, you'd know all about that, since you carry its sister."

"Tenseiga does not suit my purposes," Sesshomaru said dismissively.

Kaijinbo chuckled, shaking his head. "No, I suppose it wouldn't. A sword that doesn't kill isn't terribly useful is it?" He walked a few steps away, one clawed hand rubbing his chin. "But a sword to rival Tetsusaiga is a tall order. It is not for a lack of skill. Even the best swordsmith is hampered by the materials available to them. Totosai created those swords from your father's fangs." Kaijinbo cut his eyes over at Sesshomaru. "What quality of material do you bring me to work with?"

The words were a challenge, one that Sesshomaru felt all the way to his bones.

" _Do you have something to protect?"_

His fingers twitched at the memory of the last words the Inu no Taisho has spoken to him. Such a pointless question.

Sesshomaru reached up and without even flinching yanked a fang from his mouth and tossed it to Kaijinbo. The sword smith caught it easily. "Hm. Not bad. But whether it will rival the Tetsusaiga remains to be seen."

"It will," Sesshomaru said. He wouldn't allow for anything else.

* * *

Sango wished she could have stayed for more than a day in her village. She wanted time to heal, both physically and from her grief. But she had a mission to complete. Healing would just have to happen along the way. So she left with sunrise, setting a course for Kaede's village. As it was just her and Kirara, they made good time, but Sango didn't push Kirara to keep traveling late. It wouldn't be a good idea to tire Kirara out when it was just the two of them and Sango was still recovering.

The night passed without incident, and Sango was up before the sun the next morning, eager to complete her journey to the village. The others might already be there, assuming their trip had not been delayed. They took to the sky again, and by late morning Sango could see signs that she was getting close.

"Wait, what's that?"

Kirara paused at Sango's question, hovering in the air. In the distance where the forest ended, the trees lining the edge looked black. Unease pricked her. Something was wrong.

"Let's keep going, Kirara," Sango said. "But be cautious."

Kirara flew on, circling around so they would be approaching the village with the sun at their backs. As they drew closer and Sango was able to see beyond the edge of the forest to the village, she sucked in a breath at the sight. "No."

It wasn't just the tree line that was blackened. The grass was dead, the buildings faded and crumbling as though they'd been abandoned for centuries to the elements. She spotted the bodies of animals, twisted and decayed as though acid had been poured over them. Sango recognized the effects. She'd seen them once before.

"Naraku's orb of destruction."

Kirara growled at his name.

"It has to be," Sango insisted. The damage done to the village was the exact same damage Naraku had done the last time he'd unleashed this particular attack, though the last time he hadn't been in a village. "Where are the villagers?"

She saw the bodies of animals, but not a single person. Sango didn't hold out any hope that they were alive. There had been no one in the village that could have stood up to Naraku, not even Kaede.

Grimly, Sango strapped on her mask. The worst of the miasma unleashed by the attack would be long gone, but she wasn't willing to take the risk. "Fly lower, Kirara. We have to find them."

Kirara dipped down until she was level with the tops of the huts. It didn't take long to confirm that the village was empty. They widened their search, spreading in circles around the village. When they finally did find them, Kirara drew up short.

Chilled to her core, Sango stared. She had seen her fair share of ugly deaths as a slayer, but this, the pile of twisted, rotting corpses, took things to a new level. _But why leave them here of all places?_

In the stillness, Sango her something buzz. Moving fast, Sango twisted and threw her hiraikotsu, slicing the fluttering poison insect in two. Her eyes narrowed as she caught her weapon. "Naraku."

No doubt he'd left the insect to spy on their reaction. It was clear that he'd done this for no other reason than to hurt them.

 _No, not us._

Inuyasha. It was Inuyasha that posed the biggest threat. Inuyasha was the one that had managed to do the most damage to Naraku. Inuyasha was the one that had foiled Naraku's attempts to get their jewel shards. This slaughter had nothing to do with the village, nothing to do with Sango or the others, because they would just use their grief and anger to fuel their hunt for Naraku.

But Inuyasha…

If Naraku had been spying on them – and Sango now firmly believed that he _had_ – then Naraku had to know that this was the way most likely to break Inuyasha's spirit.

Knowing that this attack had everything to do with Inuyasha answered Sango's earlier question of 'why here.' The answer of course was Inuyasha. He was the reason that Naraku had used the villager's bodies to fill and overflow the well.

"We can't let him see this," Sango said. It was a given that Inuyasha would blame himself when he found out, even though the blame rightfully lay at Naraku's feet. But it would be so much worse if he actually had to see what had happened.

"Kirara, let's go!"

They took off. Sango knew the general direction the others would be approaching from, so she had Kirara fly in a zigzag pattern searching for them. It was only an hour before she spotted the group, and without Sango having to say anything Kirara dove for them.

"Sango!" Kagome called out as Kirara touched down. Her golden eyes narrowed as she took note of the fact that Sango was still wearing her mask. "What's wrong?"

She glanced from face to face as they looked up at her. There was no gentle way to tell them. "Naraku attacked the village while we were gone."

Inuyasha immediately stepped towards her. "Are they okay?"

Miroku closed his eyes and bowed his head before Sango even spoke. It seemed he at least already knew the answer.

She shook her head. "They're all dead."

Kagome's hand tightened on Tetsusaiga until her knuckles were white. Shippo gasped, shrinking in on himself. Ginta kept his eyes on Inuyasha, which made sense considering Ginta had never even set foot in the village. Inuyasha just stared at her, his jaw working but no sound coming out.

"There is no chance of survivors?" Miroku asked.

"Only if someone wasn't in the village when the attack happened," Sango said. "And if that happened, they'll be long gone. It looks like Naraku unleashed an orb of destruction in the village. The area is completely uninhabitable by humans."

"No!"

All eyes went to Inuyasha at his outburst. Kagome shifted towards him, her hand rising slightly before falling back to her side. "Inuyasha," she started, her voice gentle and hesitant, but Inuyasha cut her off.

"No way. There has to be some kind of mistake. Naraku can't just…they can't just be gone!"

 _He's taking it as badly as I feared._ He couldn't be allowed to see the actual results of Naraku's attack.

Sango slid off of Kirara's back, favoring her injured leg as she did. "Naraku doesn't care if people are directly involved in this fight or not. He knew attacking the village would hurt us. That's all the motivation he needed."

Inuyasha was already shaking his head in denial. "But we weren't even there!"

"I believe that was Naraku's point," Miroku said.

Inuyasha turned his head towards him, allowing Sango to step close enough to jab him in the arm with a sleeping dart. He jerked away from her with a startled yelp. "What the hell, Sango?"

"Sorry, Inuyasha," she said. "It's for your own good."

He swayed on his feet, eyes blinking rapidly as the drug began to work through his system. Ginta quickly moved to his side, wrapping an arm around him just before his eyes closed and he sagged down.

"What was that for?" Shippo demanded, glaring up at Sango.

Sango was unmoved by his anger, glancing at the others. "The attack had nothing to do with us. The point of it was to break Inuyasha's spirit. If he actually sees what Naraku did, it'll work."

"What makes you so sure?" Kagome asked.

"Naraku put their bodies in the well."

Everyone fell silent at that. Ginta stood, having scooped Inuyasha up in his arms. Shippo had taken a new perch on Ginta's shoulder as well. "Does Naraku know what the well does?" the wolf demon asked.

"Not sure," Sango said. "But he's obviously been spying on us to know that it's important."

No one seemed to like that bit of news, but then, there wasn't really anything about this situation that wasn't awful. They travelled nearer to the village in silence. Sango noticed when the demons in the group were able to smell what was up ahead, their noses twitching and faces growing even grimmer.

Finally Sango came to a stop. "This is as far as we should take Inuyasha for now."

Ginta set Inuyasha down, propping him up against a tree. "How much longer is he going to be out?"

"Not much," Sango said. Going to her bag she pulled out a length of thin, tough rope.

"You're going to tie him to the tree?" Miroku asked.

"Can you think of a better way to make sure he doesn't follow us?" Sango shot over her shoulder.

Miroku just shrugged, and no one moved to stop her as Sango wrapped the rope around him. When she had him secured, she glared at Ginta and Shippo. "Don't untie him. I don't care what he says."

"We won't," Ginta promised.

"Kirara, stay with them," Sango told her. Then she turned to Miroku and Kagome. "We'd better get going."

The three of them made their way to the well, no conversation passing between them as they walked. It only took a few minutes for them to make it, and when they did Sango heard Kagome draw in a sharp breath at the gruesome sight.

"You were right to keep Inuyasha from seeing this," Miroku said. He walked forward, raising one hand. Closing his eyes, Miroku began to whisper a prayer to help the departed souls pass on. Sango didn't hold out much hope that it would do anything. An entire village murdered, their bodies desecrated…that was a recipe for cursed grounds if ever she'd heard of one.

As Miroku prayed, Sango approached Kagome. She was just staring at the pile of corpses, her golden eyes narrowed, and her whole body tense as a bowstring. Asking if she was okay would be monumentally stupid, so instead Sango said, "We'll avenge them, Kagome."

"Yes, we will," Kagome agreed, her voice as sharp and hard as Tetsusaiga's edges. "But it won't bring them back."

Miroku's prayer came to an end and he turned towards them. "Burial will be impossible."

He was right. Their bodies had been badly damaged by the miasma. Even if they could touch them without risking being poisoned themselves, Sango doubted the bodies would hold together well enough for them to be moved for burial. "In a situation like this, I'd normally recommend burning them where they lay."

"We can't do that," Kagome said. "We can't risk damaging the well."

Which meant they really only had one option, but Sango was loath to say it out loud. She didn't need to though. Miroku looked down at his right hand, and his jaw tensed. Without a word, he turned back to the well. He held his hand out, palm forward. "Wind tunnel!"

* * *

Cool hands brushed Inuyasha's face. Blinking his eyes open, he saw a young woman leaning over him. She was short and slim, and dressed in the garb of a priestess. Her long black hair was tied back from her face. She looked young, except for her eyes. Her brown eyes seemed so much older than the rest of her.

"Who are you?" Inuyasha asked.

She smiled down at him as she sat back on her heels. "Don't you recognize me, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha sat up and looked around, trying to assess where he was. It looked like the woods outside the village, but everything seemed off somehow. Shadowed, almost blurred, like the scenery quit existing when he wasn't paying attention to it. Only the woman seemed real.

There was something familiar about her. Not her appearance; Inuyasha couldn't remember ever seeing her before. But there was something about her expression, about those eyes, that was familiar. Frowning, Inuyasha reached out with his awareness. His whole body went rigid when he felt the quiet, steady hum.

"Kaede."

Her smile softened. "Yes."

Inuyasha shook his head. "This isn't real."

"That, I suppose, depends on your definition of real."

Inuyasha shoved himself to his feet, pacing away from her. "No. You're not - !"

"Dead?" Kaede supplied. "Yes, Inuyasha, I am."

He closed his eyes and turned away from her. This was all wrong.

There was a rustle of cloth as Kaede stood, and a moment later he felt her hand rest on his back. "I am sorry I didn't have more time to train you, Inuyasha. There is still much about your powers that you don't know."

Inuyasha whirled on her. "How can you say that?" His hands balled into fists. "How can you just apologize like this is somehow your fault?"

Kaede clasped her hands in front of her as she looked up at him. She was no longer smiling, but her expression was still calm. "Because I am sorry. I should have insisted you train more. If I'd known how short my time with you would be, I would have."

Inuyasha just stared at her, at a loss for words. Kaede reached out and took one of his hands in hers. "I am not upset by my death. I have always known that my fate would most likely involve being killed by a demon. It is the fate of most priests and priestesses to die in such a way. I do wish I could have saved the villagers, but done is done. I will do what I can to help their spirits move on."

She squeezed his hand, feeling warm, and real, and alive.

"Before I move on to my new task, Inuyasha, I have two things for you: a warning and a gift." She made sure he was looking into her eyes before she continued. "The warning is this: do not allow yourself to be consumed by revenge."

"What?" He jerked his hands out of hers, floored by her words. "Are you saying I shouldn't kill Naraku?"

She shook her head. "No. Naraku must die, but he must die for the right reasons. Kill him to protect the living, not to avenge the dead. You must listen to me, Inuyasha! You cannot allow yourself to be filled with bitterness. It is your spirit, your compassion, which keeps the Shikon jewel pure. If you lose that then you will taint the jewel yourself, and if you do that then Naraku will win and our deaths will have been in vain."

Inuyasha couldn't speak past the lump in his throat. Kaede reached up and touched his cheek. "You may mourn us. You may be angry if you must. But you must let us go."

Inuyasha didn't answer. He couldn't. He didn't know if he could do what Kaede asked.

Kaede's fingers traced up until her pointer and middle finger pressed on his forehead. "And now for your gift." Kaede began to glow, and Inuyasha had to close his eyes against the brightness. "I couldn't finish training you in life, but I can give you knowledge now. But knowing isn't the same as doing. You'll still need to practice."

The press of her fingers on his forehead began to grow uncomfortably warm. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Giving you a gift. Inuyasha, _remember._ "

The light grew, becoming uncomfortably bright even behind his closed eyes, then the world seemed to dissolve out from under him, and Inuyasha fell.

* * *

Inuyasha jerked, letting out a yelp and a curse as his head banged against something hard. Opening his eyes, he found himself in the woods, tied to a tree. Kirara, Ginta, and Shippo stood in a semi-circle in front of him, watching him with wide eyes.

"What's going on?" he demanded, tugging ineffectually at the ropes that bound him.

"You were glowing!" Shippo said. "Like, really glowing!"

Glowing? _Kaede._ Then he'd really had the vision of her. But what exactly had the child done to him?

 _Wait, wait, what? Did I just think of Kaede as a kid?_

That was crazy. He'd never known Kaede as a kid, only as an old woman. Even in his vision of her, she'd been older than him, though far younger than he'd ever seen her in life.

Except he could picture it. In his mind, Inuyasha could see an image of Kaede as a scrawny kid, her hair a mess and her knees scraped up from her latest misadventure, gazing up at him with a wide grin and adoring eyes. He could picture her following him around as he went about his chores, asking questions a mile a minute as he patiently answered them.

 _No. No, not_ me _._

"Inuyasha?" Ginta asked, his tone wary. "Are you okay?"

"Kikyo."

"Um, what?" Ginta asked, leaning slightly closer.

It was probably a good thing Inuyasha was already sitting down, because the realization of what Kaede had done left him lightheaded. "I think," Inuyasha started, but then he had to pause, because even with everything he'd already been through it sounded insane. "I think Kaede woke up Kikyo's memories."

Shippo hopped closer, leaning against Inuyasha's leg. "Is that even possible?"

The question sparked faded memories of studying at a temple, reading ancient scrolls late into the night to fulfill a burning hunger for knowledge. The memories made him queasy, because Inuyasha had never studied at a temple. But it did give him an answer. "In theory," he said slowly. "It's thought that when we die, our souls remember everything from all of our past lives. When we're reborn, all of our past memories are locked away, but they're still _there_. So if someone knew how to bring those memories to the surface, then…"

Ginta frowned. "We'll, it's obviously possible. But how'd this Kaede know how to do it?"

It was hard to force the words out against the sudden lump in his throat. "She probably couldn't have if she'd been alive. Who knows how many lifetimes worth of knowledge she had access to?" It probably helped that she'd known Inuyasha in this life and in his previous life as Kikyo.

But eighteen years of someone else's memories was way more than what Inuyasha wanted to process right now. He'd deal with it and whatever repercussions that followed later. Right now he had more pressing issues to handle. "Is anyone going to untie me?"

Shippo and Ginta shifted away from him at the question, while Kirara merely watched, her tails twitching. "Sango was very insistent that we don't," Ginta said.

It wasn't hard to figure out why. Obviously Sango, like Kagome, had decided that it was better if Inuyasha didn't have to see any more death than necessary. Honestly, Inuyasha didn't want to see the dead bodies of the villagers. He didn't want to have to face them and know they were dead because he'd failed to stop Naraku. In fact, he'd be very happy to go his entire life and never see another dead person again.

But just because he didn't want to see them, that didn't mean Inuyasha didn't owe them. Their deaths hung over his head, just like the deaths of every other person Naraku had killed, and would kill in the future.

 _If only we'd been here! If we'd managed to stop Naraku already!_

But they hadn't been there. They hadn't stopped Naraku. They'd weakened him in their last confrontation, but Inuyasha hadn't managed to kill him. Then he'd just assumed that Naraku would be out of commission for a while, and decided to take a break. What if he hadn't done that? What if he'd decided to keep going after Naraku while he was weak instead?

 _Kaede might still be alive now._

"Let me go now," Inuyasha snapped, jerking at his bonds. He didn't want to see what Naraku had done to the villagers, but he owed it to them to see what his mistakes had caused.

Ginta glanced to the side at the same moment that Inuyasha sensed the approach of their missing companions. "Come on," Inuyasha said. "We all know they're getting close. What am I going to do, run?"

Ginta huffed, his lips twitching up in a smile. "Bet Sango has another sleeping dart if you tried."

Inuyasha scowled at him, but apparently the idea was reassuring enough – or amusing enough – that Ginta decided to untie him.

 _Finally!_

Inuyasha stood and stretched. A moment later the other three appeared, Kagome and Sango walking on either side of Miroku. At the sight of Kagome, Inuyasha's shoulder throbbed and unwanted memories rushed to the surface. Inuyasha fell to his knees and…

… _Kikyo hit the ground hard, crying out in pain. She didn't have to see her injured shoulder to know that it was bad. She forced herself to look up, staring into the smirking face of the last person Kikyo would ever have expected to see._

 _Kagome leaned down, delicately plucking the Shikon Jewel off the ground with fingers that were stained with Kikyo's blood. "I've got to be honest," she said. "I never really thought you'd be stupid enough to believe that I'd actually want to become a human."_

 _The words cut Kikyo far deeper than Kagome's claws had managed. Kagome had been her friend, the only friend that Kikyo had ever had. "No," she whispered._

 _Kagome just laughed at her. "Guess I shouldn't be too surprised. You were stupid enough to think I actually cared about you." She whirled about, carelessly waving a hand in Kikyo's direction. "See you later," she said in a sing song voice. Then she glanced over her shoulder, eyeing Kikyo's wounds. "On second thought, I probably won't."_

 _Painfully, Kikyo pushed herself up as tears blurred her vision._ How could I be so stupid? _She'd thought Kagome was sincere. She'd thought Kagome was misunderstood. She'd thought Kagome was lonely. Kikyo couldn't believe how wrong she'd been. Clearly she'd just projected her own feelings onto Kagome. Their friendship had been a lie from the very beginning. Now, because of her mistake, innocent people were going to die._

 _Kikyo blinked away the tears, anger blooming inside and giving her the strength to walk forward. With every painful breath her anger grew, until it blazed in her like a bonfire._

 _Kagome was right about one thing. Kikyo would die this day. Her injury was too severe for any other outcome. But Kikyo was going to make sure she didn't die alone._

* * *

AN: Okay, sorry for vanishing like that. When I started posting, I had like three or four more chapters to write, and I figured I'd easily have them done before I ever got close to needing to post them. Obviously I was wrong. My bad.

If everything goes according to plan, there's one more chapter left to this story. There will be a third installment to this series, which will also be the _final_ installment. Considering how long it's taken me to finish writing Changed, I think I'm going to post the third one (title TBD) as I go, instead of waiting until I finish writing the whole (or most of) thing. Hope you all continue to enjoy.


	22. Chapter 22

Resolution

"Inuyasha? Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha groaned as his shoulder throbbed. Without opening his eyes he reached up with his left hand to touch his shoulder, and was surprised to find it whole and uninjured.

 _Stupid. Of course I'm not hurt. That was a memory._

An awful memory, and so vivid that for a little while Inuyasha's identity had been completely buried under Kikyo's.

Someone flicked his forehead.

"If you're awake, could you quit being dramatic and tell us what happened already?"

Inuyasha opened his eyes and glared up at Ginta, but only for a second before Kagome pushed Ginta out of the way so she could lean over Inuyasha. "What happened? Are you okay?"

For a second, Inuyasha couldn't answer her. For a second, all Inuyasha could see was the smirk she'd worn as Kikyo bled out in the dirt. _Stop it! That wasn't Kagome!_ Naraku was the one that had caused Kikyo's death, not Kagome. Naraku had tricked both of them.

But Kikyo never knew that; she had died believing that Kagome had killed her. She had died hating Kagome, and Inuyasha could remember the depths of that hatred. It had been a hatred strong enough to help her push past the pain, to help Kikyo survive long enough to pin Kagome to that tree.

Inuyasha didn't hate Kagome. But he also couldn't look at her without feeling the jumbled emotions that Kikyo hadn't had the time to work through either.

"I'm okay," Inuyasha said, pushing himself back up into a sitting position. Shippo hopped into his lap, and Inuyasha automatically patted his head.

Inuyasha glanced around, taking note of where everyone was. Miroku was sitting a couple feet away, leaning back against a tree as Sango hovered over him. He didn't look good. His skin was pale and coated with a sheen of sweat. "What happened to you?"

"Nothing that some rest won't fix," Miroku said. "But you're changing the subject."

"Inuyasha," Kagome said sharply, her golden eyes narrowed as she stared at him. "What happened?"

He sighed. There wasn't any way to avoid telling them, but Inuyasha wasn't sure how Kagome would take the news. "While I was out," and here he paused a moment to glare at Sango, because he didn't appreciate the sleeping dart, "I had a vision I guess. Of Kaede. She – she woke up Kikyo's memories. When I saw you, it sparked one."

"Awakening the memories of a past life is supposed to be impossible," Miroku protested, sitting up straighter despite looking sick.

Inuyasha shrugged. "Tell that to Kaede." He didn't mention the memories of the ancient scroll Kikyo had once read that suggested it was possible. There didn't seem to be a point in saying anything about it now, and Inuyasha still wasn't really comfortable talking about Kikyo's memories anyway.

"What did you remember?"

Inuyasha turned his attention back to Kagome, which wasn't as easy as it should have been. She was entirely focused on Inuyasha, her ears perked up and face pale. Her hands were clenched into fists, and she just waited for his response.

Inuyasha didn't want to tell her. Largely because he knew it would hurt her that the first thing he'd remembered upon seeing her was dying. But also because he really didn't want to talk about what it had felt like for Kikyo, to believe that she had been betrayed so deeply, to believe that her death was at the hands of her best friend.

"I remembered her death."

Kagome flinched. Inuyasha wished he could say something to soften the blow, but what was there to say? Inuyasha gaining Kikyo's memories wasn't the same thing as Kikyo coming back to life. There was still no way to tell her that Kagome hadn't betrayed her, and that Naraku was the one that had killed her. There was no chance for reconciliation.

"I feel like I'm missing context here," Ginta said, breaking the silence. He looked over at Miroku. "Didn't you tell me that it was Naraku that killed Kikyo?"

"I did," Miroku said. "But Naraku was disguised as Kagome when he did it."

"Oh," Ginta said.

Before the silence stretched too long, Kagome abruptly stood and turned away. "If you're going to go home, you may as well go. No point in waiting."

Inuyasha picked Shippo up and stood. _Right. Going home was the plan._

Or at least it had been his plan, before all this had happened. "What about the villagers?"

"Don't worry," Kagome said. "We've got them handled. There's a lot you need to talk to your family about, so just go home."

That was true, there was a lot to tell his family, but Inuyasha didn't feel good about leaving like this. It felt too abrupt, like he should be doing something to help instead of going home. _Yeah, doing what?_ It wasn't like Kagome would let him help with the burial. Which, okay, he didn't really want to help bury the villagers' bodies. He didn't want to see what Naraku had done to them. But just leaving didn't feel right either.

 _Not like I've got a choice._

So Inuyasha turned and walked towards the well, Ginta following along. They didn't have to go far before the scenery changed. The lush greenness of the forest came to an abrupt end, giving way to withered husks of trees and brown grass that crunched with each step Inuyasha took. Goosebumps were raised on his flesh as they kept going, the very air around them heavier.

Inuyasha paused when they reached the clearing that held the well. The well itself looked unchanged, though all the plants around it were dead. But for some reason stepping into the clearing filled Inuyasha with a sense of dread that he couldn't explain.

Ginta bumped shoulders. "So that's how you travel through time?"

Inuyasha shook the feeling off so he could reply. "Um, yeah. It is."

Ginta frowned as he studied it. "Not sure Koga would approve of me letting you go five hundred years in the future without me." He glanced sideways at Inuyasha. "But I guess it'll probably be easier to talk to your family on your own, huh?"

Inuyasha wasn't sure if that assessment was actually true. How did he tell his family about everything that had happened? How did he tell them about joining the Wolf Tribe and the blood ceremony that might or might not kill him? How did he tell them that Naraku had wiped out an entire village of people because Inuyasha hadn't done enough to stop him first? How did he tell them about eighteen years of memories from his previous life suddenly rattling around in his head?

"I guess," Inuyasha agreed.

Shippo tugged at his shirt to get his attention. "How long will you be gone this time?"

Inuyasha glanced down at Shippo, and then around at the dead clearing, the results of the last break he'd taken. "Not long." He handed Shippo over to Ginta. "I'll see you guys in a bit." He went to the well, swung over the edge, and dropped.

Light flared around him, and when the light faded Inuyasha found himself in the dim confines of the well inside the well house. The oppressive feeling of death and darkness was gone. Inuyasha reached out and placed a hand on the rung of the rope ladder, but he made no other move to climb.

When he climbed the ladder, he'd be greeted by home. He would be safe. He'd be surrounded by the people that loved him the most, and they would be overjoyed to see him. He could _rest._

"I can't do this."

The words came out as a ragged whisper, and as he said them, Inuyasha realized that he didn't just mean this moment, today. He couldn't face his family at all. Not when there were so many people in the past that would never see their family members again because he hadn't done enough to stop Naraku. He couldn't rest in safety and comfort in the present while his friends waited on him in the past, keeping watch for any move Naraku might make. He couldn't take breaks, not when there were real lives on the line.

"I can't stay."

It was a shock to say the words out loud, but the moment he did Inuyasha knew it was true. He couldn't stay. He'd tried to juggle his life in the present alongside his mission in the past, and people were dead because of it. Actually defeating Naraku was going to require focus. He was going to have to remain in the past, at least until Naraku was truly defeated and the jewel restored.

 _How am I supposed to tell anyone that news?_

His family wouldn't like it. They wouldn't understand. They'd probably try to talk him out of it, and they might succeed.

"But I can't just not tell them," Inuyasha muttered. He glared up at the ceiling. He'd have to figure out a way to leave them a message, one that they wouldn't get until he was already in the past, but how?

His eyes widened as he was struck by sudden inspiration. "Got it!" With his course decided, Inuyasha climbed out of the well. He paused by the door of the well house, peeking out to make sure that no one was around to spot him. Once he was sure the way was clear, Inuyasha slipped out of the well house and left the shrine.

After all that had happened, walking down the sidewalk of the city felt almost surreal. He got a number of odd looks, reminding Inuyasha that it had been a couple days since he'd had a bath, and given the time of day he should probably still be in school. He probably looked like he was homeless or something, but he didn't care.

Finally, he reached his destination, the small clinic of Dr. Haruki. For the first time since any of his visits, the clinic was actually still open. Inuyasha hesitated for a moment before going in. Now that he was actually here, he wasn't sure that it was a great idea. Dr. Haruki and Sensei were friends; what if Dr. Haruki called Sensei and told him that Inuyasha was here?

 _I'll deal with that if it happens, I guess. It's not like I don't need to see a doctor either way._

He hadn't forgotten about the potential side effects of that blood ceremony. Inuyasha hadn't noticed any changes in himself, and so he was beginning to hope that maybe his powers had prevented the whole mutate and die scenario. Still, he didn't know for sure, and he was thinking that there might be ways that modern medicine could check.

Taking a deep breath, Inuyasha opened the door to the clinic and stepped inside. There were several patients in the waiting area that gave him funny looks, but Inuyasha had more or less expected that response. The receptionist, to her credit, managed to keep a much more neutral expression as Inuyasha approached the front desk.

"Do you have an appointment?" she asked.

"Um, no," Inuyasha said.

"Is this an emergency?" she asked, one hand fiddling with a pen.

"No," Inuyasha said. It wasn't like he was going to drop dead in the next five minutes or anything.

"Dr. Haruki doesn't mind taking walk-ins, but he has a very busy schedule this afternoon," the receptionist informed him. "If you stay you're probably going to have to wait a couple hours. If you'd like, I can make an appointment for you to come back later."

Inuyasha shook his head. "I'll wait, if that's okay."

The receptionist tapped her pen on the desk for a moment, but then nodded. "If that's what you want." She picked up a clipboard with paperwork and held it out to him. "Here you go. Just bring it back to me when you're done."

Inuyasha took the clipboard and then found the seat farthest away from everyone else. The paperwork was all pretty standard information, but Inuyasha took his time filling it out since he wouldn't have anything else to do once he was done. When he got to the question asking what his presenting complaint was, Inuyasha hesitated. Somehow 'performed blood ceremony with wolf demon and might be dying as a side effect' didn't seem like a great option to put down. Inuyasha opted to leave the question blank. He figured Dr. Haruki would recognize his name and know that whatever his issue was, it was related to his time in the past somehow.

Once he was done, Inuyasha turned the paperwork in and returned to his seat. The receptionist took his paperwork and disappeared for a few minutes; Inuyasha assumed she was giving it to Dr. Haruki. Inuyasha settled back in his seat to wait.

Time slipped by slowly, the quiet only occasionally interrupted as new patients came in, or as a nurse appeared to call someone back. The quiet and boredom left Inuyasha with way too much time to imagine how his family would react to his decision, so to avoid those thoughts he closed his eyes, bowed his head, and slipped into a meditative state.

Meditation was easy for him by now. Sinking inward and finding himself surrounded by his own power was comforting. There, he could drift and rest, losing track of time.

"Inuyasha?"

His eyes snapped open at the sound of his name. Dr. Haruki was standing in front of him, a frown on his face and a file in one hand. Inuyasha straightened and winced as his muscles protested having been still for so long. A quick glance at the clock hanging on the wall told him he'd been meditating for several hours.

"I'm okay," Inuyasha said automatically as he stood.

Dr. Haruki snorted. "Since you're here to see me, I find that unlikely." He turned without waiting for a reply and motioned for Inuyasha to follow. "Come on, then."

Inuyasha followed, trying to subtly stretch as he did so. Dr. Haruki led him back to the exam room, and had Inuyasha sit. "So," Dr. Haruki said, "it's been a while. How have things been going?"

Inuyasha's natural inclination was to try and downplay how dangerous things were in the past, but he realized that he couldn't. There was no way to soften the things that he had seen this time, and even if there had been, Inuyasha need Dr. Haruki to understand his decision so he wouldn't try to stop him.

"It's been bad. Really bad." That didn't cover it in the least, but Inuyasha didn't know how else to say it.

"Do you have any injuries that I need to treat right away?" Dr. Haruki asked.

"No," Inuyasha said. "I mean, I'm not hurt. I don't think?"

Dr. Haruki leaned back against the counter, setting the folder aside. "Well, if you're not in immediate danger, why don't you tell me what happened?"

Even though that had been a part of Inuyasha's plan, it was still hard to make the words come. This was the sort of thing he usually confided in Sensei or Hojo, and he didn't know Dr. Haruki very well. _Sensei trusts him._ Inuyasha took a deep breath, his hands clenching the edge of the exam table, and he started talking.

He sketched over finding out that Naraku had created a new body, and having to return abruptly to the past, as well as Sesshomaru's attack on them. Talking about finding the village that Koga had wiped out was a lot harder. Talking about it made Inuyasha remember the sight of the torn bodies, the sound of the wolves tearing into flesh. Bile rose in his throat at the memory, but Inuyasha swallowed it down and kept talking, because he didn't know if he could start again if he stopped.

He told Dr. Haruki about Koga, about the deal Inuyasha had made with him and the blood ceremony that they'd done to seal it. He talked about getting sick, and waking up to find out he'd killed Hayasaka. He talked about Kagome turning into a full demon, about watching her go insane and murder people. Finally, he talked about Naraku slaughtering the village, and about Kaede's ghost awakening Kikyo's memories in him.

As he wound the story down, Inuyahsa met Dr. Haruki's gaze and said, "And that's why I need to go to the past, and I need to stay there. Until we kill Naraku, I can't – I can't afford to take any breaks. Not when he'll just murder people who have nothing to do with anything!"

Dr. Haruki didn't say anything, and Inuyasha couldn't read the expression on his face. After a pause, Dr. Haruki straightened from his position and reached for a cabinet door. "I think we'll start by drawing blood. I have a friend at a lab that I think I can convince to do a full workup for me without asking too many questions. If that blood ceremony has changed you somehow, we ought to be able to stop it."

Dr. Haruki gathered the supplies he needed as he spoke. Inuyasha waited for him to say something about his declaration that he was going to remain in the past, but he didn't. "Is that it?"

The doctor glanced at Inuyasha over the rim of his glasses. "I think one thing at a time is quite enough at the moment."

Inuyasha didn't really have a response for that, because Dr. Haruki was probably right. He pushed up his shirt sleeve when ordered, and watched as Dr. Haruki wiped down the juncture of his elbow with a swab to clean it. With practiced efficiency, Dr. Haruki inserted the needle, and soon had several vials of blood collected. It wasn't until he was done with that task and putting items away that Dr. Haruki spoke again.

"You know, if I knew of a therapist that would believe your story, I'd recommend that you see one."

"A therapist?" Inuyasha asked blankly.

Dr. Haruki de-gloved and began washing his hands. "You've had multiple back to back traumatic events. I'd be very surprised if you wouldn't benefit from therapy after that; I certainly did."

Inuyasha started at the casual revelation. "You?"

Dr. Haruki smiled wryly as he dried his hands. "Oh, my experiences weren't exactly like yours. No time travel or demons involved for one thing. But yes, I did spend my fair share of time in therapy afterwards as part of my healing process. Of course, finding someone you could go to is rather irrelevant if you aren't in this time anyway." Dr. Haruki tossed the paper towels into the trashcan before turning to face Inuyasha again. "Inuyasha, I might be about to state the obvious, but I feel it needs to be said. If you go through with your plan, you could die. I don't mean from whatever illness you may have gained by the blood ceremony. This Naraku is actively trying to kill you, and there is a chance he could succeed. Or, if he doesn't kill you, another demon after the jewel may kill you instead. Have you really considered that?"

He hadn't, not really. Inuyasha thought about it now, the possibility that he could lose, or perhaps win at the cost of his own life. He thought about what that might do to his family, who would just be waiting for him in the present, never knowing exactly what had happened to him. Just the thought left him feeling cold.

"It doesn't matter," Inuyasha said.

Dr. Haruki raised an eyebrow. "It doesn't?"

"I mean, it's not like I want to die," Inuyasha said. "I don't. Obviously, I'm going to do whatever I can to survive. But I'm the best chance they have at stopping Naraku. And Naraku's _going_ to keep killing people whether I'm in the past or not. He just is." Inuyasha glared at Dr. Haruki. "If you saw someone that was hurt, and you were the only doctor around, the only person that could help them, would you walk away, even if helping meant you might be in danger?"

"No," Dr. Haruki said. "But I'm an adult."

"There aren't any adults that can do what I do!" Inuyasha caught himself, because Dr. Haruki didn't deserve to be shouted at. Taking a deep breath, he continued at a more reasonable volume. "There aren't. There's no one else. Just – just me." Inuyasha closed his eyes, because the next sentence was going to hurt, but it had to be said. "There were plenty of adults in the village that Naraku wiped out. Didn't do their kids any good. But _I_ could have done something, if I'd just been there."

Dr. Haruki didn't say anything. Inuyasha opened his eyes and looked up at him. "If there was someone else who could do this, believe me, I'd let them. I'm tired. I don't want to see any more death. I'm the _only_ one who stands a chance, but I can't help if I'm here."

"Say your plan works," Dr. Haruki said. "Say you survive killing Naraku, and you gather all of the jewel shards you're after. What then?"

The question made Inuyasha pause, because he hadn't thought things through that far. But now that he took a moment to think, the answer felt obvious. "Then I'll come home." He tried for a smile, but wasn't sure if he succeeded. "Maybe you'll have enough time to find a therapist for me by then."

Dr. Haruki snorted at that. "And what do you need from me? Besides the test."

"I'm going back tonight," Inuyasha said. "I haven't told Sensei or my family about my decision. I can't. If they know, they'll try to stop me. They might succeed, and I can't let that happen. But I need them to know. I don't want them to just wonder what's happening to me. So I wanted – I hoped you could tell Sensei for me."

Dr. Haruki shook his head. "I have a better idea." He rifled through a drawer and pulled out several sheets of blank paper. Slipping them on a clipboard, he handed it to Inuyasha. "I'll deliver a message for you, but you need to write it."

Without giving Inuyasha a chance to reply, Dr. Haruki headed for the door. "If you need more paper, it's in the drawer. I'll be at the front desk when you're done."

It took him hours to write the letters. He wrote one for Sensei, one for his mother, one for Gramps, one for Souta, and after some thought, one for Hojo as well. He ended up using a lot of paper, as each letter went through several drafts. But finally he finished, and he found Dr. Haruki waiting where he'd said.

Dr. Haruki handed him some envelopes for the letters. "I put together supplies for you. It's just some basic first aid, but it may come in handy. I included instructions in case you're unfamiliar with any of it."

"Thanks," Inuyasha said. "That's really – thank you."

Dr. Haruki collected the sealed envelopes and handed him the bag of supplies. "When are you heading back?"

"Now, I guess," Inuyasha said. He didn't want to risk running to his family by trying to sneak into his home for clean clothes or whatever. He'd manage in the past with what he had.

Dr. Haruki nodded. "I'll give you some time to get back then before I go see your Sensei." He paused for a moment and then added, "When you make it back after everything, be sure you let me know."

"I will," Inuyasha promised. Then he was out the door, and on his way home. _No, don't think of it like that. I'm_ not _going home. I'm going to the past. And I'm going to_ finish _this._

* * *

Haruki waited over an hour before he left his office; night had fallen as he walked down the now quiet sidewalks. It was probably enough time for Inuyasha to have returned to the past. A small part of Haruki hoped it wasn't, the part of him that said he must be completely insane for allowing a kid to walk back into that nightmare. _What else could I do?_

When lives hung in the balance, hard decisions had to be made. The picture that Inuyasha had painted was horrific, and Inuyasha was the best option for putting an end to it, much as Haruki didn't like to admit it.

So Haruki walked slowly, giving Inuyasha more time to successfully return to the past. Eventually he arrived at the dojo. It was late enough that Haruki knew they'd be in the house, so that's where he went. He knocked briskly on the front door, hoping as he did so that he wouldn't wake Usagi. It was only a few moments before the door opened, and his friend was frowning down at him. "Haruki? What are you doing here at this time?"

Haruki held out the letters that Inuyasha had written. "Delivering a message. You might want to sit down for this one, Toga."

Toga took the letters from him, his brows drawing together as he saw the names on the envelopes. He moved further inside, opening the one with "Sensei" scrawled over it as he did so. Haruki followed him in, pausing to close the front door. No sooner had he managed that then Toga whirled around again, his dark eyes flashing and the letter clenched in his fist.

"He's already gone back, Toga," Haruki said. "There's no point in running after him."

"How could you – " Toga started, but Haruki held up a hand to silence him.

"Finish reading the letter. Then we'll talk."

* * *

Souta couldn't sleep. He ought to be sleeping. It was a school night, and he had a test the next day. But Inuyasha had been gone a while this time, and worry kept Souta awake.

He tossed and turned in his bed, but no position he tried was comfortable. Frustrated, Souta finally kicked the covers off and sat up. "Maybe it'll help if I get something to drink," he muttered.

Souta slipped out of his room and down the stairs, careful not to make any noise. He didn't want to wake up his mom, or Gramps. As he crept across the living room, movement out of the window caught his eye, and Souta paused to look. _Is that Inuyasha?_

It _was_. But for some reason Inuyasha wasn't coming towards the house. He was going back to the well house.

Souta sprinted for the front door, no longer caring if he made enough noise to wake the others. He flung the door open and ran for the well house, desperation lending him speed. Yanking open the door to the well house, Souta shouted, "Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha jerked around to stare up at Souta at the top of the steps. He'd been leaning on the edge of the well, a familiar posture that Souta knew meant he'd been about to jump down. Souta just didn't understand _why_. If he'd only just gotten home, why go back?

"Wh-what are you doing?" Souta panted.

Inuyasha's shoulders slumped for a moment. "I'm sorry, Souta."

 _What?_

Inuyasha turned around, gripped the well, and jumped.

* * *

AN: And that's the end of Changed! Thanks to everyone who has followed along, and especially to those that have taken time to review! Keep an eye out for the next story, titled Inverted. I'm not sure exactly when it'll go up, but the plan is for it to be the last one in this series. I hope to see all of you there!


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